Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) Earns Buy Rating from BWS Financial

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at BWS Financial in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $200.00 price target on the specialty chemicals company’s stock. BWS Financial‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 30.00% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of Hawkins from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hawkins from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Barclays set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Hawkins and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hawkins presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.50.

Hawkins Price Performance

Shares of HWKN stock traded up $18.41 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $153.85. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 423,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 164,276. Hawkins has a 1-year low of $116.04 and a 1-year high of $174.12. The company has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.86, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.54 and a current ratio of 2.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $126.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.14.

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 26th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.15. Hawkins had a net margin of 7.29% and a return on equity of 15.42%. The company had revenue of $313.82 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $302.70 million. On average, research analysts predict that Hawkins will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hawkins

In other news, VP Douglas A. Lange acquired 910 shares of Hawkins stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $118.75 per share, with a total value of $108,062.50. Following the acquisition, the vice president owned 28,169 shares in the company, valued at $3,345,068.75. This represents a 3.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey P. Oldenkamp acquired 1,290 shares of Hawkins stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $119.00 per share, for a total transaction of $153,510.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 104,223 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,402,537. This represents a 1.25% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 3.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hawkins

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $449,055,000. Giverny Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $13,493,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $12,860,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Hawkins during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,601,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LP grew its position in shares of Hawkins by 79.5% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,842 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,256,000 after buying an additional 3,917 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.71% of the company’s stock.

Hawkins News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Hawkins this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Earnings and revenue exceeded expectations. Hawkins reported adjusted EPS of $1.34, up from $1.08 a year earlier and above analyst estimates of approximately $1.19–$1.22. Revenue increased 11.9% year over year to $313.8 million, surpassing estimates near $302.7 million. Hawkins fiscal second-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability and cash generation improved. Gross profit rose to $76.6 million, operating profit reached $41.9 million, and net income attributable to common shareholders increased to $27.8 million. Operating cash flow was $40.3 million, supporting the market’s positive reaction to the report.
• Positive Sentiment: BWS Financial reaffirmed its “buy” rating and raised or maintained a $200 price target, implying substantial upside from the recent trading level. This reinforces bullish sentiment following the earnings beat. BWS Financial rating
• Positive Sentiment: The quarterly dividend was increased. Hawkins declared a $0.20-per-share dividend payable November 25, representing a 5.3% increase from the prior $0.19 payment and a $0.80 annualized payout. Hawkins dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent filings and market data indicate some insider purchases and mixed institutional positioning. These signals may support confidence but are less significant than the earnings results and analyst target.

Hawkins Company Profile

Hawkins, Inc (NASDAQ:HWKN) is a chemical manufacturer, blender and distributor serving customers across the United States. The company supplies a range of water treatment chemicals, industrial chemicals and specialty products to municipal, commercial and industrial users.

Its water treatment business provides chemicals and related solutions used in drinking water, wastewater and industrial water treatment applications. Hawkins also serves the industrial, health and nutrition, and specialty chemical markets, offering products such as chemical blends, custom formulations and other materials used in manufacturing, agriculture, food processing and pharmaceutical applications.

Founded in 1938, Hawkins is headquartered in Roseville, Minnesota, and operates through a network of manufacturing, blending, distribution and sales locations in the United States.