Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) have been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $162.50.

Several brokerages have commented on HWKN. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hawkins from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Hawkins in a research note on Monday. Finally, BWS Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Hawkins in a research note on Monday, November 3rd.

Hawkins Stock Performance

HWKN opened at $143.00 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $143.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a PE ratio of 35.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. Hawkins has a 12-month low of $98.30 and a 12-month high of $186.15.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by ($0.16). Hawkins had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 17.42%. The company had revenue of $280.43 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $284.42 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Hawkins will post 4 EPS for the current year.

Hawkins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 14th. Hawkins’s payout ratio is 19.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Drew M. Grahek purchased 1,587 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $126.34 per share, for a total transaction of $200,501.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 39,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,008,117.60. This trade represents a 4.17% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hawkins in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $380,000. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new position in Hawkins in the third quarter valued at approximately $79,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in Hawkins by 9.9% in the third quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 17,479 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,092,000 after acquiring an additional 1,570 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its position in Hawkins by 10.9% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 420,569 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $76,846,000 after acquiring an additional 41,184 shares during the period. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in Hawkins by 44.4% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 22,079 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $4,034,000 after acquiring an additional 6,793 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.71% of the company’s stock.

About Hawkins

Hawkins, Inc operates as a specialty chemical and ingredients company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Industrial, Water Treatment, and Health and Nutrition. The Industrial segment offers industrial chemicals, products, and services to agriculture, chemical processing, electronics, energy, food, pharmaceutical, and plating industries.