Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) Shares Acquired by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 105,969 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 625 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.13% of Hexcel worth $7,720,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth $2,185,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth $2,362,000. Evoke Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth $2,036,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC grew its stake in Hexcel by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 217,202 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $16,019,000 after purchasing an additional 30,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hexcel by 71.6% during the 4th quarter. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. now owns 179,670 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $13,251,000 after acquiring an additional 74,957 shares in the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hexcel Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Hexcel stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $64.84. 573,445 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 934,171. The company has a current ratio of 2.74, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a fifty day moving average of $67.27 and a 200-day moving average of $69.65. Hexcel Co. has a 52-week low of $58.81 and a 52-week high of $79.08.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.44. Hexcel had a return on equity of 8.97% and a net margin of 5.52%. The business had revenue of $472.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $468.93 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.50 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hexcel Co. will post 2.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.93%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on HXL shares. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective (down from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Hexcel from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Hexcel from $73.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.86.

Insider Activity

In other Hexcel news, CEO Nick L. Stanage bought 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $64.29 per share, for a total transaction of $964,350.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 392,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,230,353.34. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Hexcel news, Director Catherine A. Suever purchased 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.33 per share, with a total value of $27,332.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,076,060.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Nick L. Stanage bought 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.29 per share, for a total transaction of $964,350.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 392,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,230,353.34. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 43,400 shares of company stock worth $2,820,322 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.85% of the company’s stock.

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.