Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 32,021 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $2,362,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its holdings in Hexcel by 68.1% during the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 442 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the period. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in Hexcel in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hexcel by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 412 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Hexcel during the second quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in Hexcel during the third quarter worth about $41,000. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on HXL shares. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $65.00 price target (down previously from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial upgraded Hexcel from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on Hexcel from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Hexcel from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hexcel currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $76.57.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HXL traded down $1.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $62.55. 1,780,480 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 841,638. Hexcel Co. has a 12-month low of $58.81 and a 12-month high of $79.08. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.44, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.23. The business's fifty day moving average price is $72.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.65.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The aerospace company reported $0.43 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $474.01 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hexcel Co. will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This is a positive change from Hexcel's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Hexcel's payout ratio is presently 48.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hexcel news, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $3,608,074.73. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Hexcel news, insider Gina Fitzsimons sold 864 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $243,337.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Thierry Merlot sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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. 1.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.