Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Price Target Increased to $78.00 by Analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) had its price objective lifted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $69.00 to $78.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the aerospace company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on HXL. Bank of America reissued an underperform rating and issued a $65.00 price objective (down previously from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group cut Hexcel from a buy rating to a neutral rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $87.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley cut Hexcel from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Northcoast Research cut Hexcel from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an outperform rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hexcel has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $77.14.

Hexcel Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE HXL opened at $61.76 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 2.74. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $71.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.65. Hexcel has a fifty-two week low of $58.81 and a fifty-two week high of $79.08. The company has a market cap of $5.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.81, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.23.

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

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This is a boost from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.39%.

Insider Transactions at Hexcel

In other news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 owns 50,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was 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 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hexcel

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Hexcel by 86.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,785 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $859,000 after acquiring an additional 5,476 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new position in Hexcel in the 1st quarter worth $2,831,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Hexcel by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 14,407 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,050,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. raised its stake in Hexcel by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,782 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Hexcel in the 1st quarter worth $136,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

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.