Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN) Shares Purchased by Northern Trust Corp

Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Hawkins, Inc. (NASDAQ:HWKN - Free Report) by 16.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 235,096 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 32,670 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.12% of Hawkins worth $28,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wasatch Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Hawkins during the 4th quarter worth about $42,466,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Hawkins by 487.7% during the fourth 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. lifted its position in shares of Hawkins by 61.9% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins in the fourth quarter worth approximately $13,087,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. 69.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hawkins Price Performance

Shares of Hawkins stock traded down $0.62 on Wednesday, hitting $119.67. 147,239 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 124,880. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $113.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $117.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.87. Hawkins, Inc. has a 1-year low of $71.98 and a 1-year high of $139.55.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. Hawkins had a return on equity of 18.95% and a net margin of 8.60%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hawkins, Inc. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hawkins Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. Hawkins's dividend payout ratio is presently 18.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HWKN has been the topic of a number of research reports. CJS Securities assumed coverage on Hawkins in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "market outperform" rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. 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 note on Monday, April 14th.

Hawkins 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.