Nuveen LLC Acquires Shares of 49,760 Hawkins, Inc. $HWKN

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has invested approximately $5.27 million in Hawkins, Inc., acquiring a new stake of 49,760 shares in the specialty chemicals company.
• Hawkins recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.18 to $0.19, with a payout ratio of 18.72% and an annualized yield of 0.4%.
• Following several analysts' ratings changes, Hawkins currently holds a consensus rating of "Buy" with an average price target of $162.50.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 49,760 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $5,271,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.24% of Hawkins as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HWKN. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 9,605 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,178,000 after buying an additional 3,485 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 88.5% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,377 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,641,000 after buying an additional 6,280 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 1,956 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 11,817 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $1,450,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hawkins Stock Down 1.5%

Hawkins stock traded down $2.49 during trading on Friday, reaching $167.33. 95,760 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 176,655. The company's 50-day moving average is $161.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 2.31. Hawkins, Inc. has a 52-week low of $98.30 and a 52-week high of $185.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.21, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.86.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last announced 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 firm had revenue of $293.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $278.76 million. On average, analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

Hawkins Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. This is a positive change from Hawkins's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

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.