BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 3,263 Shares of Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets trimmed its holdings in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) by 30.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,605 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 3,263 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in Hawkins were worth $933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wasatch Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Hawkins during the fourth quarter worth $42,466,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in Hawkins by 487.7% in the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 254,837 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $31,260,000 after purchasing an additional 211,472 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 235,096 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $28,839,000 after purchasing an additional 32,670 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Hawkins by 61.9% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 149,616 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $18,353,000 after purchasing an additional 57,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hawkins in the fourth quarter worth about $13,087,000. Institutional investors own 69.71% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on HWKN shares. BWS Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Hawkins in a report on Thursday, May 15th. CJS Securities initiated coverage on Hawkins in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Hawkins from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday.

Hawkins Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:HWKN traded up $1.83 during trading on Monday, reaching $128.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 114,693 shares, compared to its average volume of 124,808. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a PE ratio of 32.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.87. Hawkins, Inc. has a 12 month low of $83.88 and a 12 month high of $139.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $116.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $117.64.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $245.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.69 million. Hawkins had a return on equity of 18.95% and a net margin of 8.60%. On average, research analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.82%.

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.