Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,250,000 shares, a decrease of 12.0% from the May 31st total of 1,420,000 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,090,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.1 days.

Hexcel Stock Up 1.5 %

NYSE HXL traded up $0.95 on Wednesday, reaching $64.74. The company had a trading volume of 438,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 937,011. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s fifty day moving average is $67.23 and its 200 day moving average is $69.72. Hexcel has a 52-week low of $58.81 and a 52-week high of $79.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44. The business had revenue of $472.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $468.93 million. Hexcel had a return on equity of 8.97% and a net margin of 5.52%. Hexcel’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Hexcel will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.93%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.28%.

Insider Activity at Hexcel

In related news, CEO Nick L. Stanage bought 15,000 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $64.29 per share, for a total transaction of $964,350.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 392,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,230,353.34. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Nick L. Stanage bought 15,000 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $64.29 per share, for a total transaction of $964,350.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 392,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,230,353.34. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell bought 10,000 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $64.13 per share, for a total transaction of $641,300.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 17,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,141,706.39. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 43,400 shares of company stock worth $2,820,322 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.85% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cetera Trust Company N.A bought a new position in Hexcel in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Hexcel during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Hexcel by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on HXL shares. UBS Group cut their price target on Hexcel from $73.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Northcoast Research cut Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $81.00 to $95.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Hexcel from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on Hexcel from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.86.

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.