Ingalls & Snyder LLC Sells 8,924 Shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Ingalls & Snyder LLC lowered its holdings in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 390,046 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 8,924 shares during the period. Hexcel comprises about 1.0% of Ingalls & Snyder LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Ingalls & Snyder LLC owned 0.48% of Hexcel worth $24,456,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of HXL. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 17,131 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $1,059,000 after acquiring an additional 3,922 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 19.7% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 6,682 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $413,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098 shares during the period. Kopion Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kopion Asset Management LLC now owns 88,099 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $5,447,000 after acquiring an additional 11,460 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 5,400 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 1,200 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Hexcel by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,704 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $356,000 after acquiring an additional 884 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Stock Performance

NYSE HXL opened at $64.90 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.31. Hexcel Co. has a 12-month low of $57.50 and a 12-month high of $77.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $64.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.75.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 2.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. This is an increase from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Hexcel’s payout ratio is currently 37.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HXL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hexcel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Hexcel from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, TD Cowen raised shares of Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.09.

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.