Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) Receives $76.50 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $76.50.

Several analysts have weighed in on HXL shares. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Hexcel from $90.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays reduced their target price on Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Hexcel from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st.

Hexcel Stock Up 1.3 %

Hexcel stock opened at $62.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.74. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $71.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.55. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a PE ratio of 50.43, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23. Hexcel has a fifty-two week low of $58.81 and a fifty-two week high of $79.08.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.45 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $472.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.93 million. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.39%.

Insider Activity at Hexcel

In related news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.10, for a total value of $62,294.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total value of $322,335.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 50,371 shares in the company, valued at $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.10, for a total transaction of $62,294.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $243,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hexcel

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,846,871 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $578,707,000 after buying an additional 27,850 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in Hexcel by 1.1% in the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,344,230 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $282,983,000 after buying an additional 47,591 shares during the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC grew its position in Hexcel by 93.0% in the fourth quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC now owns 1,503,055 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $110,850,000 after buying an additional 724,280 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Hexcel by 143.6% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,466,380 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $108,146,000 after buying an additional 864,405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in Hexcel by 18.8% in the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,462,293 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $95,254,000 after buying an additional 231,207 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

About Hexcel

Hexcel Corporation develops, manufactures, and markets carbon fibers, structural reinforcements, honeycomb structures, resins, and composite materials and parts for use in commercial aerospace, space and defense, and industrial applications. It operates through two segments, Composite Materials and Engineered Products.