Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Sunday.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on HXL. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Hexcel from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 1st. UBS Group set a $99.00 target price on shares of Hexcel in a report on Friday, January 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Hexcel from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Hexcel from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hexcel currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $82.17.

Hexcel Stock Up 1.8%

HXL stock opened at $92.58 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $81.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.27. Hexcel has a 12 month low of $45.28 and a 12 month high of $93.14. The company has a current ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.06.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The aerospace company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.02. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 9.54%. The business had revenue of $491.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $484.46 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Hexcel has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.100-2.300 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hexcel

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Hexcel by 18.3% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,104,121 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $377,196,000 after acquiring an additional 790,320 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in Hexcel by 122.7% in the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,849,941 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $304,091,000 after purchasing an additional 2,671,682 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Hexcel by 4.3% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,690,924 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $264,990,000 after purchasing an additional 191,649 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 103.8% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,759,673 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $155,894,000 after purchasing an additional 1,405,538 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,506,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $185,199,000 after purchasing an additional 7,371 shares during the period. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hexcel Company Profile

Hexcel Corporation is a global leader in advanced composite materials for aerospace and industrial applications. The company specializes in the development and manufacture of lightweight, high-performance products that enhance fuel efficiency, durability and structural strength. Its offerings are critical to the aerospace sector, where demand for lighter, more efficient aircraft drives continuous innovation in materials.

Hexcel’s product portfolio encompasses carbon fiber reinforcements, pre-impregnated composites (prepregs), honeycomb core, engineered adhesives and structural film adhesives.