Magnetar Financial LLC Invests $434,000 in Hexcel Corporation $HXL

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC made a new investment of approximately $434,000 in Hexcel Corporation, acquiring 7,931 shares in the first quarter.
• Hexcel's stock has seen various analysts revise their price targets, with Royal Bank of Canada raising its target to $70.00, signaling a general consensus rating of "Hold".
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, with an annualized yield of 1.1% and a payout ratio of 62.96%.

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hexcel Corporation (NYSE:HXL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 7,931 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $434,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,323 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in Hexcel by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,938 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 0.3% during the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 98,746 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $5,407,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of Hexcel by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 9,497 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $520,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aviso Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Aviso Financial Inc. now owns 13,830 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $757,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company's stock.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HXL traded up $0.27 on Thursday, reaching $64.15. 691,435 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 791,411. The company's 50 day moving average is $60.83 and its 200-day moving average is $56.85. Hexcel Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $45.28 and a fifty-two week high of $71.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 2.69 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.10 billion, a PE ratio of 59.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 1.38.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.04. Hexcel had a return on equity of 9.76% and a net margin of 4.69%.The company had revenue of $489.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Hexcel has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.850-2.050 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Hexcel Corporation will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Hexcel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 8,897 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.86, for a total value of $568,162.42. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 51,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,276,528.88. The trade was a 14.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 911 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.00, for a total transaction of $59,215.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 4,283 shares in the company, valued at $278,395. This represents a 17.54% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HXL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Hexcel from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Hexcel from $52.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. UBS Group upgraded Hexcel from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $70.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.00.

Hexcel 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.