Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Upgraded at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $74.00 target price on the aerospace company’s stock, up from their previous target price of $68.00.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on HXL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Hexcel from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Vertical Research downgraded Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Hexcel from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.33.

Hexcel Stock Performance

HXL stock opened at $62.53 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.61. Hexcel has a 12 month low of $57.50 and a 12 month high of $77.09. The company has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 21st. The aerospace company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.01. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.73% and a return on equity of 9.99%. The firm had revenue of $457.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $457.07 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.38 earnings per share. Hexcel’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.96%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.80%.

Institutional Trading of Hexcel

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 65,095 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,025,000 after purchasing an additional 5,173 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Hexcel by 59.4% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 33,076 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $2,024,000 after purchasing an additional 12,329 shares during the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in Hexcel in the third quarter valued at about $1,154,000. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Hexcel by 32.1% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 70,023 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,330,000 after buying an additional 17,011 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 4.1% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 37,673 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,329,000 after buying an additional 1,497 shares in the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.