Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Hexcel (NYSE:HXL - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on HXL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Hexcel from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Hexcel from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Hexcel to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.09.

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Hexcel Trading Down 2.9 %

Shares of NYSE:HXL traded down $1.71 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $56.49. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,299,084 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,130,830. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $64.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.72. Hexcel has a fifty-two week low of $56.02 and a fifty-two week high of $75.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.53, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 2.21.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52. Hexcel had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 6.94%. As a group, analysts forecast that Hexcel will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. This is an increase from Hexcel's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Hexcel's payout ratio is presently 42.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hexcel

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,816,442 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $301,991,000 after acquiring an additional 37,442 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 4,372.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,502,676 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $156,919,000 after buying an additional 2,446,716 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,996,363 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $125,172,000 after purchasing an additional 395,744 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,482,249 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $92,938,000 after purchasing an additional 122,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,437,058 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $90,104,000 after purchasing an additional 24,393 shares during the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.