Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) CFO Michael Achary Sells 22,694 Shares

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) CFO Michael Achary sold 22,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total value of $1,728,828.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,108.80. This represents a 33.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HWC traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $76.46. 178,198 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 895,912. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.21 billion, a PE ratio of 15.00 and a beta of 0.95. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 12 month low of $54.05 and a 12 month high of $79.36. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $72.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $68.87.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55. The business had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $398.89 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 21.81%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.37 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on HWC. Wall Street Zen lowered Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Hovde Group cut shares of Hancock Whitney from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $74.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.56.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of HWC. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Hancock Whitney by 8.3% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 86,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,522,000 after buying an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 16.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 807,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,354,000 after acquiring an additional 114,029 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,456,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

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.