Simplicity Solutions LLC Invests $201,000 in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Simplicity Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 2,728 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Ingalls & Snyder LLC lifted its stake in Hexcel by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 412,157 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $30,397,000 after purchasing an additional 9,883 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in Hexcel by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 5,186 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $382,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,362,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,770,000. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the fourth quarter worth approximately $201,000. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hexcel Price Performance

Hexcel stock opened at $61.71 on Monday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.58. Hexcel Co. has a 12 month low of $58.81 and a 12 month high of $79.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.13 billion, a PE ratio of 49.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.68.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $474.01 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Hexcel Co. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HXL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Hexcel from $90.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Hexcel from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Hexcel from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $76.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 3,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,337.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Hexcel news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 $243,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 50,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.