Hexcel vs MSA Safety
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Hexcel and MSA Safety side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Hexcel is the larger business, with $1.9B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $1.9B for MSA Safety.
- MSA Safety grew revenue faster (3.7%, against −0.5%).
- MSA Safety kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (19.8% operating margin, against 9.1%).
- MSA Safety turned more of its sales into free cash flow (15.8% FCF margin, against 8.3%).
- MSA Safety earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (17.3%, against 6.5%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Hexcel’s earnings: a P/E of 35.9x against 22.7x for MSA Safety.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Hexcel
HXL
1/11
Share count change
MSA Safety
MSA
9/11
Revenue growth5-year growthGross marginOperating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDA
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | HXL FY25 | MSA FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $6.1B | $7.1B |
| Revenue | $1.9B | $1.9B |
| Free cash flow | $157M | $295M |
| Net income | $109M | $279M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | −0.5% | 3.7% |
| 5-year growth | 4.7% | 6.8% |
| Share count change | −3.6% | −0.5% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 23.0% | 46.5% |
| Operating margin | 9.1% | 19.8% |
| Net margin | 5.8% | 14.9% |
| FCF margin | 8.3% | 15.8% |
| Return on capital | 6.5% | 17.3% |
| Return on equity | 7.9% | 22.2% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | $922M | $416M |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 3.1x | 0.9x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $508M | $172M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 35.9x | 22.7x |
| Piotroski F-score | 6 | 6 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.