Hawkins, Inc. $HWKN Shares Sold by QSV Equity Investors LLC

Key Points

• QSV Equity Investors LLC reduced its stake in Hawkins, Inc. by 28.6%, owning 12,426 shares worth approximately $1.31 million after the sale.
• Hawkins recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.18 to $0.19 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.4%.
• Analyst ratings for Hawkins show a consensus of "Moderate Buy" with a price target average of $162.50.

QSV Equity Investors LLC lowered its position in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) by 28.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,426 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 4,984 shares during the quarter. QSV Equity Investors LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Hawkins worth $1,316,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Hawkins by 533.3% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 266 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Hawkins during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its holdings in Hawkins by 118.8% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Hawkins during the first quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hawkins during the fourth quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of Hawkins in a report on Thursday, July 24th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Hawkins to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. BWS Financial lifted their target price on shares of Hawkins from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Hawkins from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $162.50.

Hawkins Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HWKN traded up $1.94 on Friday, reaching $170.03. 166,756 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 153,258. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Hawkins, Inc. has a 1-year low of $98.30 and a 1-year high of $185.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50-day moving average of $157.25 and a 200-day moving average of $130.33.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.07. Hawkins had a net margin of 8.37% and a return on equity of 18.35%. The business had revenue of $293.27 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $278.76 million. Equities analysts forecast that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Hawkins's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.72%.

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.