Stifel Nicolaus Trims Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Target Price to $86.00

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) had its price objective decreased by Stifel Nicolaus from $90.00 to $86.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Bank of America restated an underperform rating and set a $65.00 target price (down from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered Hexcel from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their target price for the company from $87.00 to $72.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Truist Financial upgraded Hexcel from a hold rating to a buy rating and raised their target price for the company from $62.00 to $96.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $76.93.

Hexcel Stock Performance

Shares of Hexcel stock opened at $61.89 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Hexcel has a 12 month low of $58.81 and a 12 month high of $79.08. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.60. The stock has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 49.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.23.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $457.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $474.01 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. Hexcel’s revenue was up 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders 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%. This is an increase from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. Hexcel’s payout ratio is presently 48.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hexcel

In other Hexcel news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total transaction of $322,335.00. Following the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Hexcel news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.63, for a total transaction of $322,335.00. Following the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 3,375 shares in the company, valued at $243,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HXL. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its stake in shares of Hexcel by 68.1% in the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 442 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new position in Hexcel in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Creative Planning bought a new position in Hexcel in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Hexcel by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Hexcel during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

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.