Hexcel (HXL) Competitors

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) and Air Lease (NYSE:AL) are related mid-cap companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, earnings, valuation, media sentiment, profitability, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Which has higher valuation & earnings, HXL or AL?

Air Lease has higher revenue and earnings than Hexcel. Air Lease is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hexcel, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hexcel	$1.90B	2.50	$132.10M	$1.51	39.17
Air Lease	$2.81B	2.35	$427.70M	$5.72	10.31

Is HXL or AL a better dividend stock?

Hexcel pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Air Lease pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Hexcel pays out 45.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Air Lease pays out 15.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Hexcel has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Air Lease has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years. Air Lease is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media favor HXL or AL?

In the previous week, Hexcel had 12 more articles in the media than Air Lease. MarketBeat recorded 19 mentions for Hexcel and 7 mentions for Air Lease. Air Lease's average media sentiment score of 0.75 beat Hexcel's score of 0.23 indicating that Air Lease is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Hexcel	8 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Air Lease	2 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is HXL or AL more profitable?

Air Lease has a net margin of 24.77% compared to Hexcel's net margin of 6.60%. Hexcel's return on equity of 10.36% beat Air Lease's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hexcel	6.60%	10.36%	5.76%
Air Lease	24.77%	8.04%	1.91%

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in HXL or AL?

95.5% of Hexcel shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.6% of Air Lease shares are held by institutional investors. 2.0% of Hexcel shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 6.6% of Air Lease shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts recommend HXL or AL?

Hexcel currently has a consensus price target of $58.67, indicating a potential downside of 0.82%. Air Lease has a consensus price target of $59.29, indicating a potential upside of 0.57%. Given Air Lease's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Air Lease is more favorable than Hexcel.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hexcel	1 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.10
Air Lease	1 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67

Which has more volatility and risk, HXL or AL?

Hexcel has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Air Lease has a beta of 1.35, suggesting that its stock price is 35% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Air Lease beats Hexcel on 13 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.