Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Trading Up 3.4% Following Earnings Beat

Shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL - Get Free Report) traded up 3.4% during trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $66.98 and last traded at $65.75. 351,852 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 862,886 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.60.

The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $457.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $457.07 million. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 9.55%. Hexcel's revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Hexcel's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Hexcel from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Vertical Research downgraded shares of Hexcel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $73.00 to $71.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $71.00 to $70.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.08.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hexcel

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HXL. Summit Financial LLC grew its holdings in Hexcel by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 5,357 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $335,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,440 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. Centerpoint Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 44.6% in the 1st quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 34.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.47% of the company's stock.

Hexcel Price Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is $61.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.29.

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.