Handelsbanken Fonder AB Acquires 500 Shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,974 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $957,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HXL. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Hexcel by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,251 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $756,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 68.1% during the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 442 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in Hexcel by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 37,007 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,411,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Hexcel by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 62,044 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,576,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Hexcel by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 8,989 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $663,000 after buying an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE HXL opened at $64.16 on Monday. Hexcel Co. has a 12-month low of $58.81 and a 12-month high of $79.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a PE ratio of 54.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.43.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.52% and a return on equity of 8.97%. The company had revenue of $472.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.93 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hexcel Co. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.94%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is 51.28%.

Insider Transactions at Hexcel

In related news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of Hexcel 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 owns 50,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Hexcel news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 50,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the business’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 sale, the insider now directly 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 insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Hexcel from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hexcel from $77.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.57.

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.