Brandes Investment Partners LP Boosts Stake in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 99.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,304,669 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 651,062 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $81,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aviso Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Hexcel in the 4th quarter valued at about $851,000. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in Hexcel by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 19,069 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,196,000 after buying an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Hexcel by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,128,681 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $70,768,000 after buying an additional 105,510 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in Hexcel by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 20,354 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,276,000 after buying an additional 2,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in Hexcel by 24.9% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 140,060 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $9,080,000 after buying an additional 27,943 shares during the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HXL opened at $56.47 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $63.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.48. Hexcel Co. has a 52 week low of $55.24 and a 52 week high of $73.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.51, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 2.21, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52. Hexcel had a net margin of 6.94% and a return on equity of 10.66%. Analysts anticipate that Hexcel Co. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This is a boost from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on HXL shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $60.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Hexcel from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.09.

Hexcel 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.