Kennedy Capital Management LLC Boosts Position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 460.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 132,945 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 109,205 shares during the period. Kennedy Capital Management LLC owned 0.16% of Hexcel worth $9,685,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Hexcel by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 8,989 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $663,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 77.5% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 12,634 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $932,000 after purchasing an additional 5,516 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,193 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $235,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 48,374 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $3,568,000 after purchasing an additional 2,274 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hexcel in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,770,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Hexcel from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Hexcel from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Friday, June 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Hexcel from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised Hexcel from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $81.00 to $95.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.71.

Hexcel Price Performance

NYSE:HXL traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $65.49. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 777,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 944,745. Hexcel Co. has a 52-week low of $58.81 and a 52-week high of $77.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 2.75. The business’s 50-day moving average is $65.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.67. The company has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a PE ratio of 55.92, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.28.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The aerospace company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.04. Hexcel had a net margin of 5.78% and a return on equity of 9.55%. The business had revenue of $500.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $484.26 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hexcel Co. will post 2.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Tom Gentile bought 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $66.25 per share, for a total transaction of $993,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $993,750. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Hexcel news, CEO Tom Gentile bought 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $66.25 per share, for a total transaction of $993,750.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 15,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,750. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Catherine A. Suever purchased 400 shares of Hexcel stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $68.33 per share, for a total transaction of $27,332.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 15,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,076,060.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.39% of the company’s stock.

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.