London Co. of Virginia Purchases New Holdings in Hawkins, Inc. $HWKN

Key Points

• London Co. of Virginia opened a new position in Hawkins during the first quarter, buying 174,415 shares worth about $26.8 million and ending with roughly 0.83% ownership.
• Hawkins reported quarterly earnings of $0.74 per share, missing estimates by $0.02, though revenue of $265.91 million came in above expectations.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed to cautious: Weiss Ratings downgraded the stock to Hold, and the consensus rating is currently Hold with an average target price of $185.

London Co. of Virginia acquired a new position in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 174,415 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $26,791,000. London Co. of Virginia owned about 0.83% of Hawkins at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HWKN. Values First Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hawkins by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 9,855 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,514,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hawkins by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,852 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hawkins by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 15,090 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $2,144,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hawkins by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $542,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Hawkins by 0.9% in the second quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 13,618 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $1,935,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on HWKN shares. Weiss Ratings cut Hawkins from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays set a $170.00 target price on shares of Hawkins and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $185.00.

Hawkins Stock Performance

Shares of Hawkins stock opened at $139.03 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $150.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $150.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a current ratio of 2.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.56, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.78. Hawkins, Inc. has a 52 week low of $117.98 and a 52 week high of $186.15.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 13th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.76 by ($0.02). Hawkins had a return on equity of 16.08% and a net margin of 7.53%.The company had revenue of $265.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $255.28 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.44%.

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.

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