Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Price Target Cut to $86.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) had its price objective reduced by Stifel Nicolaus from $90.00 to $86.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on HXL. Northcoast Research cut shares of Hexcel from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Bank of America reiterated an underperform rating and set a $65.00 price target (down from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Hexcel from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $66.00 in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $76.50.

Hexcel Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE HXL opened at $61.71 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.23. Hexcel has a 52-week low of $58.81 and a 52-week high of $79.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $71.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.52.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.06). Hexcel had a return on equity of 9.31% and a net margin of 5.91%. The business had revenue of $457.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $474.01 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Hexcel will post 2.23 EPS for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is 48.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hexcel

In other news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total transaction of $322,335.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 50,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total value of $322,335.00. Following the transaction, the insider now 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 is available at this link. Also, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the business’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 transaction of $62,294.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hexcel

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 53,624 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,955,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Hexcel by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,294 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $498,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in Hexcel by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 4,476 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC grew its position in Hexcel by 2.0% in the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 9,219 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $601,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hexcel by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,251 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. 95.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hexcel Company Profile

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.