Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) VP Acquires $108,062.50 in Stock

Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) VP Douglas Lange purchased 910 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $118.75 per share, for a total transaction of $108,062.50. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 28,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,345,068.75. This represents a 3.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Hawkins Price Performance

Shares of HWKN traded down $0.90 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $117.67. The stock had a trading volume of 153,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 162,307. The company’s 50-day moving average is $137.82 and its 200 day moving average is $147.50. Hawkins, Inc. has a 12-month low of $116.04 and a 12-month high of $186.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.79.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $315.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $313.42 million. Hawkins had a net margin of 7.29% and a return on equity of 15.42%. On average, equities analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Hawkins’s payout ratio is presently 20.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on HWKN shares. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hawkins from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. BWS Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $200.00 price target on shares of Hawkins in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays set a $142.00 price target on shares of Hawkins and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Hawkins from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hawkins currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of Hawkins by 14,584.4% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,294,304 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $468,121,000 after buying an additional 3,271,870 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Hawkins during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $449,055,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,525,789 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $216,754,000 after acquiring an additional 20,958 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Hawkins by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,067,451 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $151,642,000 after acquiring an additional 111,318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Hawkins by 31.4% in the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 552,419 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $78,477,000 after acquiring an additional 131,850 shares in the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.