Hexcel stock holds steady after Q3 results beat on revenue

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Shares of Hexcel (NYSE:HXL [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HXL]) were little changed in extended trading Wednesday after the aerospace materials supplier reported third-quarter revenue that topped Wall Street’s estimates.

The company reported adjusted earnings of $0.37 per share, missing analysts’ expectations of $0.38 per share, and revenue of $456 million, surpassing the consensus forecast of $448 million.

Net income fell to $20.6 million, or $0.26 a share, from $39.8 million, or $0.49 a share, a year earlier. Wall Street’s estimate for GAAP earnings was $0.37 a share.

Total sales were flat compared with the prior year’s $457 million, as weakness in commercial aerospace was offset by gains in defense and space programs, the company said.

“Hexcel’s third-quarter sales and adjusted EPS were in line with expectations as we experienced seasonally slower sales combined with expected commercial aerospace destocking, particularly with the Airbus A350,” Chairman and Chief Executive Tom Gentile said in a statement.

Gentile noted that while 2025 has been affected by tariffs, inflation and continued destocking, demand from major aircraft manufacturers remains strong. The company expects to be at the bottom end of its 2025 sales guidance and has trimmed its earnings outlook accordingly.

Looking ahead to 2026, Hexcel anticipates higher production rates from Airbus (OTCPK:EADSF [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/EADSF]) (OTCPK:EADSY [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/EADSY]) and Boeing (BA [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/BA]), which could generate about $500 million in additional annual revenue once those aircraft programs reach peak build rates.

To capitalize on expected future cash flow, Hexcel (NYSE:HXL [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HXL]) announced a $350 million accelerated share repurchase as part of an expanded $600 million stock buyback authorization.

Hexcel (NYSE:HXL [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HXL]) now expects 2025 sales of around $1.88 billion, with adjusted EPS between $1.70 and $1.80, reflecting the effect of tariffs. The company reaffirmed its free cash flow guidance of about $190 million and plans to keep capital expenditures below $90 million for the year.

A quarterly dividend of $0.17 a share will be paid on November 10 to shareholders of record as of November 3.

Despite short-term headwinds in the commercial aerospace market, Gentile said Hexcel remains confident in long-term growth:

“With the supply chain stabilizing, we’re increasingly confident in the outlook for commercial aerospace original equipment build rates,” he said.

Shares of Hexcel (HXL [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HXL]) have gained about 1.2% year to date.

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* Hexcel Corporation (HXL) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Transcript [https://seekingalpha.com/article/4804743-hexcel-corporation-hxl-q2-2025-earnings-call-transcript]
* Hexcel Non-GAAP EPS of $0.37 misses by $0.01, revenue of $456.2M beats by $8.29M [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4507114-hexcel-non-gaap-eps-of-0_37-misses-by-0_01-revenue-of-456_2m-beats-by-8_29m]
* Hexcel Q3 2025 Earnings Preview [https://seekingalpha.com/news/4506324-hexcel-q3-2025-earnings-preview]
* Seeking Alpha’s Quant Rating on Hexcel [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/HXL/ratings/quant-ratings]