Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 21,501 Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 43.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,318 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,501 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $1,801,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 67.6% during the third quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $84.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total value of $28,005.72. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,683,432.56. This trade represents a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 0.4%

Hancock Whitney stock opened at $74.76 on Tuesday. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a one year low of $54.05 and a one year high of $75.43. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $68.79 and a 200 day moving average of $67.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market cap of $6.07 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35 and a beta of 0.95.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $393.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $400.01 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.20% and a net margin of 21.34%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.47 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 41.07%.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ: HWC) is a regional financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi. The firm was established in April 2019 through the merger of Hancock Holding Company and Whitney Holding Corporation, each of which traced its roots to the late 19th century. This combination created one of the largest bank holding companies in the Gulf South region, with a network of branches serving both urban and rural communities.

The company’s core business activities include commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.