Fmr LLC Grows Position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Fmr LLC raised its holdings in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 77,493 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 8,135 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $4,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,835,994 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $302,008,000 after buying an additional 136,290 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Hexcel by 277.9% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,695,343 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $105,874,000 after acquiring an additional 1,246,765 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 36.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,600,619 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $98,966,000 after purchasing an additional 425,402 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Hexcel by 8.0% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,406,287 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $87,829,000 after acquiring an additional 103,679 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Hexcel by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 1,161,415 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $71,810,000 after purchasing an additional 129,335 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Stock Performance

Shares of HXL stock opened at $63.89 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a PE ratio of 48.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Hexcel Co. has a 52 week low of $57.50 and a 52 week high of $77.09. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.85.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $457.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $457.07 million. Hexcel had a return on equity of 9.99% and a net margin of 5.73%. Hexcel’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.38 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Hexcel Co. will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Hexcel from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. UBS Group increased their target price on Hexcel from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com raised Hexcel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.83.

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.