HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Invests $646,000 in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 8,866 shares of the aerospace company’s stock, valued at approximately $646,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new stake in shares of Hexcel in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI lifted its position in Hexcel by 41.7% during the 4th quarter. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI now owns 908 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Finally, Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel lifted its position in Hexcel by 775.2% during the 4th quarter. Psagot Value Holdings Ltd. Israel now owns 954 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 845 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HXL has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $81.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley cut Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $66.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target (down previously from $75.00) on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hexcel has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Nick L. Stanage acquired 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 392,446 shares in the company, valued at $25,230,353.34. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Nick L. Stanage acquired 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 392,446 shares in the company, valued at $25,230,353.34. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey C. Campbell acquired 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $64.13 per share, with a total value of $641,300.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 17,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,141,706.39. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders bought 43,400 shares of company stock worth $2,820,322. Corporate insiders own 1.85% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of Hexcel stock opened at $63.23 on Wednesday. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $58.81 and a twelve month high of $79.08. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $67.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.36. The firm has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a PE ratio of 54.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.31.

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

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.28%.

About Hexcel

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.