Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) Short Interest Down 11.0% in August

Hexcel Co. (NYSE:HXL) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,290,000 shares, a decline of 11.0% from the August 15th total of 1,450,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 863,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 1.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Hexcel Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of HXL traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $60.40. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 170,353 shares, compared to its average volume of 888,949. The company has a current ratio of 2.75, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $63.05 and its 200-day moving average is $66.46. Hexcel has a 52-week low of $58.54 and a 52-week high of $77.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.69, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.29.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The aerospace company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.04. Hexcel had a return on equity of 9.55% and a net margin of 5.78%. The company had revenue of $500.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $484.26 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Hexcel will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Hexcel’s payout ratio is presently 51.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on HXL shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Hexcel from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 28th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Hexcel from $88.00 to $81.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Hexcel from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on Hexcel from $73.00 to $71.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Hexcel from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.54.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hexcel

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of HXL. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hexcel in the first quarter worth $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Hexcel during the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its stake in Hexcel by 44.6% during the 1st quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 723 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hexcel in the first quarter valued at about $54,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Hexcel by 34.8% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

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.