Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Price Target Cut to $86.00 by Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus

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

HXL has been the subject of several other reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an outperform rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. StockNews.com downgraded Hexcel from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Saturday, February 3rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded Hexcel from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and reduced their target price for the company from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Hexcel has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $76.93.

Hexcel Trading Up 0.1 %

Hexcel stock opened at $61.89 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $71.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.74. Hexcel has a one year low of $58.81 and a one year high of $79.08. 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 released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.06). Hexcel had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The business had revenue of $457.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $474.01 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. This is a boost 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

In other news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was 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 directly owns 50,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.10, for a total value of $62,294.40. Following the completion of 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 currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hexcel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 68.1% in 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. Cetera Trust Company N.A purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hexcel by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 412 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 95.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.