Hawkins, Inc. $HWKN Shares Sold by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. cut its stake in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 87,144 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock after selling 94,183 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.42% of Hawkins worth $15,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Hawkins by 137.5% in the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 16,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $2,979,000 after purchasing an additional 9,439 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Hawkins during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,568,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Hawkins during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $935,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hawkins by 12.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 113,371 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $20,715,000 after buying an additional 12,767 shares during the period. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC acquired a new position in Hawkins during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,594,000. 69.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HWKN has been the subject of several recent research reports. BWS Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price objective on shares of Hawkins in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hawkins from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Hawkins from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $162.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James A. Faulconbridge acquired 1,500 shares of Hawkins stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $129.29 per share, for a total transaction of $193,935.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 50,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,581,766.03. The trade was a 3.04% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hawkins Stock Down 3.1%

Shares of NASDAQ HWKN opened at $148.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.35. Hawkins, Inc. has a 1 year low of $101.72 and a 1 year high of $186.15. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $146.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.77. The firm has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.53, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.82.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $244.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $252.51 million. Hawkins had a net margin of 7.75% and a return on equity of 16.85%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Hawkins’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.24%.

Hawkins Profile

Hawkins, Inc (NASDAQ: HWKN) is a specialty chemical company that produces and distributes water-treatment and industrial chemicals across North America. Founded in 1938 and headquartered in Roseville, Minnesota, the company has built a network of manufacturing facilities and distribution centers that serve municipal, industrial and commercial customers. As a publicly traded entity, Hawkins leverages its long-standing presence in the chemical distribution industry to provide tailored solutions for complex water-treatment challenges and specialty chemical needs.

Hawkins’ product portfolio encompasses a wide range of chemicals, including sodium hypochlorite, sodium hydroxide, hydrogen peroxide, chlorine, acids and specialty blends.