Marshall Wace LLP Acquires 143,741 Shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 112.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 271,053 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 143,741 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $16,995,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of Hexcel by 1,069.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 620 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 567 shares during the last quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI bought a new position in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hexcel by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 840 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Hexcel in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,159 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on HXL. Truist Financial decreased their target price on shares of Hexcel from $80.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Hexcel from an “overweight” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Hexcel from $61.00 to $50.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.40.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of HXL opened at $52.03 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $57.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $61.05. Hexcel Co. has a fifty-two week low of $45.28 and a fifty-two week high of $73.58. The stock has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a PE ratio of 32.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.08. 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) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52. Hexcel had a return on equity of 10.66% and a net margin of 6.94%. Analysts anticipate that Hexcel Co. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. 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 dividend payout ratio is 42.77%.

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.