Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $140.90 and last traded at $141.12, with a volume of 45010 shares. The stock had previously closed at $137.28.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hawkins from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. BWS Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Hawkins in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, CJS Securities began coverage on shares of Hawkins in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “market outperform” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock.

Hawkins Trading Up 2.1%

The firm has a market cap of $2.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $127.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $118.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.15, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $245.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $230.69 million. Hawkins had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 18.93%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Hawkins’s payout ratio is currently 17.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hawkins

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Hawkins by 533.3% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 266 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hawkins by 118.8% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 280 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Hawkins in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the first quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 155.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 355 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is owned by 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.