Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) Shares Sold by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP reduced its stake in shares of Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 230,025 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after selling 6,233 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 1.10% of Hawkins worth $28,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in HWKN. Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new position in Hawkins during the fourth quarter worth $42,466,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Hawkins by 487.7% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 254,837 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $31,260,000 after acquiring an additional 211,472 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Hawkins by 61.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 149,616 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $18,353,000 after acquiring an additional 57,179 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hawkins in the fourth quarter valued at about $13,087,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Hawkins by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 99,420 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $12,196,000 after purchasing an additional 3,436 shares during the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hawkins Stock Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ:HWKN traded down $1.85 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $119.93. The company had a trading volume of 20,262 shares, compared to its average volume of 123,012. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $110.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $117.45. The company has a current ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Hawkins, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.98 and a 12-month high of $139.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.65, a PEG ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.82.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($0.05). Hawkins had a net margin of 8.60% and a return on equity of 18.95%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HWKN has been the topic of several analyst reports. BWS Financial raised shares of Hawkins from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $160.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. CJS Securities assumed coverage on Hawkins in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "market outperform" rating and a $125.00 price target for the company.

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.