Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Monday morning.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Hexcel from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Hexcel from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.09.

Hexcel Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE HXL opened at $57.19 on Monday. Hexcel has a one year low of $55.25 and a one year high of $73.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.21 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.97, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52. Hexcel had a net margin of 6.94% and a return on equity of 10.66%. As a group, analysts expect that Hexcel will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is an increase from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Hexcel’s payout ratio is presently 42.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HXL. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 4,372.3% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,502,676 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $156,919,000 after buying an additional 2,446,716 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hexcel during the 4th quarter valued at $60,241,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 99.6% during the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,304,669 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $81,803,000 after buying an additional 651,062 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 249.6% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 815,658 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $51,142,000 after buying an additional 582,353 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 1,153.9% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 535,962 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,546,000 after buying an additional 493,218 shares in the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.