Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) Trading 4.9% Higher – Here’s Why

Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN)’s stock price rose 4.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $122.02 and last traded at $121.25. Approximately 73,623 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 99,152 shares. The stock had previously closed at $115.54.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, BWS Financial reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $122.00 price objective on shares of Hawkins in a research report on Thursday, October 31st.

Hawkins Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 0.84. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $125.75 and its 200 day moving average is $118.60.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.18 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $247.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $259.59 million. Hawkins had a return on equity of 19.64% and a net margin of 8.74%. As a group, analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.61%. Hawkins’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.41%.

Institutional Trading of Hawkins

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in shares of Hawkins by 4.6% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 56,131 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $5,108,000 after acquiring an additional 2,447 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Hawkins by 45.1% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 89,026 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $8,101,000 after acquiring an additional 27,680 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Hawkins by 1.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,571 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $507,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Choreo LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 130.8% in the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 26,089 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 14,785 shares during the period. Finally, Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hawkins by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Van Hulzen Asset Management LLC now owns 8,168 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $743,000 after purchasing an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hawkins Company Profile

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.