Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $75.63 and last traded at $75.4880, with a volume of 55592 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $74.72.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HWC has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.25.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 1.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $6.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.64 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $68.91 and a 200 day moving average of $67.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.04. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.34% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The company had revenue of $393.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $400.01 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. Hancock Whitney’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 41.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total transaction of $28,005.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.6% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 1.9% in the first quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $539,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Hancock Whitney by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Hancock Whitney by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

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.