Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Hexcel Corporation (NYSE:HXL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $101.98 and last traded at $101.60, with a volume of 212971 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $99.31.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Hexcel from $85.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Hexcel in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Hexcel in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. They set an “overweight” rating and a $95.00 price objective for the company. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on shares of Hexcel in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. They issued a “sector weight” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hexcel presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.00.

Hexcel Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $93.03 and its 200-day moving average is $86.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.54, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.05.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The aerospace company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $501.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $488.11 million. Hexcel had a net margin of 6.07% and a return on equity of 11.08%. Hexcel’s revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. Hexcel has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.100-2.300 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Hexcel Corporation will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Hexcel Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. Hexcel’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.37%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HXL. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Hexcel by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,104,121 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $377,196,000 after acquiring an additional 790,320 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 122.7% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,849,941 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $304,091,000 after purchasing an additional 2,671,682 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Hexcel by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,690,924 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $264,990,000 after purchasing an additional 191,649 shares during the period. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in Hexcel by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 2,506,068 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $185,199,000 after purchasing an additional 7,371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Hexcel by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,289,145 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $169,168,000 after purchasing an additional 428,541 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.47% of the company’s stock.

Hexcel Company Profile

Hexcel Corporation is a global leader in advanced composite materials for aerospace and industrial applications. The company specializes in the development and manufacture of lightweight, high-performance products that enhance fuel efficiency, durability and structural strength. Its offerings are critical to the aerospace sector, where demand for lighter, more efficient aircraft drives continuous innovation in materials.

Hexcel’s product portfolio encompasses carbon fiber reinforcements, pre-impregnated composites (prepregs), honeycomb core, engineered adhesives and structural film adhesives.