Alliancebernstein L.P. Lowers Stock Position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its position in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 6.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,563,696 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 249,659 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $223,444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC increased its position in Hexcel by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 77,493 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $4,791,000 after purchasing an additional 8,135 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its position in shares of Hexcel by 6.0% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 10,375 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $641,000 after acquiring an additional 587 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in shares of Hexcel in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,634,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 588.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 205,458 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $12,704,000 after acquiring an additional 175,608 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Hexcel by 54.5% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 24,998 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $1,546,000 after purchasing an additional 8,821 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Stock Performance

Shares of HXL stock opened at $54.74 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.43, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.30. Hexcel Co. has a one year low of $54.52 and a one year high of $73.58. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $62.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 2.21.

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

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. This is a positive change from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. Hexcel’s payout ratio is presently 42.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Hexcel from $74.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. TD Cowen upgraded Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Hexcel from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hexcel from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $72.64.

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.