24,314 Shares in Hawkins, Inc. $HWKN Bought by Ascent Group LLC

Ascent Group LLC bought a new stake in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 24,314 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,454,000. Ascent Group LLC owned about 0.12% of Hawkins at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HWKN. New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of Hawkins by 137.5% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 16,302 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,979,000 after acquiring an additional 9,439 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hawkins during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,568,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Hawkins during the 3rd quarter worth $935,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Hawkins by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 113,371 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $20,715,000 after purchasing an additional 12,767 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Hawkins by 74.6% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,050 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,394,000 after purchasing an additional 10,279 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hawkins

In related news, Director James A. Faulconbridge purchased 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $129.29 per share, with a total value of $193,935.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 50,907 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,581,766.03. This represents a 3.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Hawkins Price Performance

Shares of Hawkins stock opened at $151.53 on Monday. Hawkins, Inc. has a 1-year low of $101.72 and a 1-year high of $186.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 38.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The business has a 50-day moving average of $144.89 and a 200-day moving average of $148.59.

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). Hawkins had a net margin of 7.75% and a return on equity of 16.85%. The business had revenue of $244.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $252.51 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. Hawkins’s dividend payout ratio is 19.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HWKN shares. BWS Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of Hawkins in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Zacks Research raised Hawkins from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Hawkins from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $200.00.

About Hawkins

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.