AlphaQuest LLC Sells 8,960 Shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

AlphaQuest LLC lessened its position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 75.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,928 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 8,960 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $184,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 36.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,600,619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $98,966,000 after acquiring an additional 425,402 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,084,860 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $68,021,000 after buying an additional 24,133 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 751,881 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $47,143,000 after buying an additional 70,533 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 52.1% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 586,217 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $36,246,000 after buying an additional 200,722 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 581,557 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $35,957,000 after buying an additional 63,730 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Hexcel from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.09.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HXL opened at $56.47 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $63.84 and a 200-day moving average of $62.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Hexcel Co. has a 12 month low of $55.24 and a 12 month high of $73.58.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52. Hexcel had a net margin of 6.94% and a return on equity of 10.66%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hexcel Co. will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This is a positive change from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Hexcel’s payout ratio is 42.77%.

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.