Bessemer Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL)

Bessemer Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) by 12.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,579 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 977 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.’s holdings in Hexcel were worth $413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in HXL. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Hexcel in the 4th quarter valued at $60,241,000. Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Hexcel by 99.6% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 1,304,669 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $81,803,000 after buying an additional 651,062 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 249.6% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 815,658 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $51,142,000 after buying an additional 582,353 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in Hexcel by 1,153.9% in the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 535,962 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $33,546,000 after acquiring an additional 493,218 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Hexcel by 66.9% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,198,136 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $75,123,000 after acquiring an additional 480,207 shares during the last quarter. 95.47% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hexcel Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HXL opened at $52.23 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.24. Hexcel Co. has a 52 week low of $45.28 and a 52 week high of $73.58. The company has a market cap of $4.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 2.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 research analysts forecast that Hexcel Co. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

Hexcel Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.17 dividend. This is a boost from Hexcel’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hexcel from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $55.00 price objective (down previously from $63.00) on shares of Hexcel in a report on Tuesday. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Hexcel from $75.00 to $68.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Hexcel from $61.00 to $50.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Hexcel to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

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.