Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) Stock Position Reduced by Weybosset Research & Management LLC

Weybosset Research & Management LLC decreased its position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 2.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 175,288 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 4,419 shares during the period. Hexcel accounts for approximately 4.8% of Weybosset Research & Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Weybosset Research & Management LLC owned 0.21% of Hexcel worth $12,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 53,624 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $3,955,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 10,251 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $756,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 37,007 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,411,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 62,044 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,576,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Hexcel

In other news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of Hexcel 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 sale, the insider now owns 3,375 shares in the company, valued at $243,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $3,608,074.73. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $62,294.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,375 shares in the company, valued at $243,337.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.85% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on HXL. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Northcoast Research cut Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price 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 given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.57.

Hexcel Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of HXL traded up $1.27 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $65.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,132,864 shares, compared to its average volume of 924,157. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 2.74 and a quick ratio of 1.51. Hexcel Co. has a 12-month low of $58.81 and a 12-month high of $79.08. The stock has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a PE ratio of 55.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50 day moving average is $70.24 and its 200 day moving average is $69.41.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44. The firm had revenue of $472.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $468.93 million. Hexcel had a return on equity of 8.97% and a net margin of 5.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Hexcel Co. will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.28%.

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.