Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Trims Stake in Hexcel Corporation (NYSE:HXL)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. sold 93,383 shares of Hexcel Corporation, reducing its stake by 22.6% to 319,724 shares, valued at approximately $17.5 million.
• Hexcel's stock decreased by 1.2% to $60.37, with a market capitalization of $4.80 billion and a 52-week trading range of $45.28 to $71.05.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, scheduled for payment on August 15th, representing an annualized yield of 1.1%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Hexcel Corporation (NYSE:HXL - Free Report) by 22.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 319,724 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 93,383 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 0.40% of Hexcel worth $17,508,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 10.4% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 5,205 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 492 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Hexcel by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 186,680 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $10,223,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Hexcel by 95.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,306 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 1,125 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Hexcel in the 1st quarter worth approximately $281,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 71.2% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,200 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 499 shares during the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HXL has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Hexcel from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Hexcel from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, April 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Monday, July 28th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Hexcel from $52.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Hexcel from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hexcel currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.33.

Hexcel Stock Performance

Shares of HXL stock traded down $0.46 during trading on Monday, reaching $59.87. 111,989 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,194,511. The company has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.44, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.69, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm's 50-day moving average is $58.04 and its 200 day moving average is $57.09. Hexcel Corporation has a 1 year low of $45.28 and a 1 year high of $71.05.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The aerospace company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.04. Hexcel had a net margin of 4.69% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The business had revenue of $489.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. The company's revenue was down 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Hexcel Corporation will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Hexcel's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.96%.

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.