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

Simplicity Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 2,728 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its holdings in Hexcel by 68.1% during the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 442 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning bought a new position in Hexcel during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Hexcel during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hexcel during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI grew its holdings in Hexcel by 110.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other 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 transaction of $322,335.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 50,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were 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 approximately $243,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.39% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on HXL. Northcoast Research cut shares of Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of Hexcel from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Bank of America reissued 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.50.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HXL opened at $61.71 on Monday. Hexcel Co. has a twelve month low of $58.81 and a twelve month high of $79.08. The company’s 50 day moving average is $71.37 and its 200 day moving average is $69.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap 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.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $474.01 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. Hexcel’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hexcel Co. will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

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

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.