Hexcel (HXL): Composite gains?

"We've looked at several ways to play anticipated growth in wind energy; we've also considered titanium makers for that industry's ties to the production of lightweight, modern aircraft," notes Bill Martin.

In his BullMarket.com, he explains, "While the two trends might not appear to have much in common at first glance, Hexcel Corp. (NYSE: HXL) offers a way to play both the aircraft and wind markets.

"The connection is the lightweight, composite materials Hexcel makes that are used by producers in both sectors. Hexcel develops and manufactures advanced structural materials.

"It is the largest U.S. producer of carbon fiber; the world’s largest weaver of reinforcement fabrics; and the number-one producer of composite materials. 

"Its product was initially developed for the aerospace industry, but is now used in a wide range of applications -- from golf clubs to satellite arrays, and from the rotor blades of wind turbines to life-saving monocoques for Formula 1 race cars. 

"It's been a rollercoaster ride for Hexcel's stock in the past 12 months. The shares hit their one-year peak of $27.19 in December 2007; by January 22nd they had plummeted to $17.. The shares rebounded through May, only to fade again. Year to date, HXL is off about 15%.

"Second-quarter profits came in shy of Wall Street's expectations as a result of costs associated with the start-up of four overseas manufacturing plants and a weak U.S. dollar. The reason Hexcel has been investing in plants in Europe is to be closer to customers such as Airbus.

"Hexcel just won a big order from Airbus that was the biggest in the company's history. It will supply carbon-fiber composite materials for the European consortium's entire family of A350 planes, which include three versions: the A350-800, A350-900, and the A350-100. The contract is expected to generate between $4-$5 billion over the 17-year life of the deal.

"Hexcel is in a great position to profit from the growing investment in wind energy platforms and the demand for lighter weight, more fuel-efficient airplanes. The skyrocketing price of crude during Q2 did much to disrupt the plans of cash-strapped airlines to acquire the new planes.

"Boeing's delays getting the Dreamliner in the air have also been well documented. Those are short-term problems, however; long term it is inevitable that air carriers will want these newer planes in their fleets.

"Wind energy is obviously a hot topic, too. Oilman Boone Pickens is pushing wind farms as an alternative to oil-fired power plants. Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection, meanwhile, has promoted them as an anecdote to greenhouse gas emissions.

"When two guys like Gore and Pickens, coming from opposite ends of the political spectrum, can come to the same view, there's some karma happening.

"A strong dollar should help Hexcel's cost structure in its overseas plants and could well lead to an earnings surprise in the second half of the year if the trend continues. This is a stock to keep on our radar."