Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $84.56.

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Hovde Group downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $74.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, June 12th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $87.00 price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Emory L. Mayfield, Jr. sold 4,990 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.40, for a total transaction of $381,236.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 15,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,189,166. This represents a 24.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Michael Achary sold 22,694 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,108.80. The trade was a 33.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Emerald Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 2nd quarter worth $3,085,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,070,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 16.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 807,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,354,000 after purchasing an additional 114,029 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 139.9% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 47,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,047,000 after purchasing an additional 27,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 84.7% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 384,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,735,000 after purchasing an additional 176,389 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

HWC opened at $72.71 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $75.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Hancock Whitney has a 1 year low of $54.05 and a 1 year high of $80.13. The stock has a market cap of $5.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.26 and a beta of 0.97.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.55. The company had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $398.89 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 21.81%.The business’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. Analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 39.22%.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

Hancock Whitney Corporation is a financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, and the parent company of Hancock Whitney Bank. Founded in 1883, the bank has grown from a community banking institution in coastal Mississippi into a regional bank serving individuals, businesses and institutions across the Gulf South.

Hancock Whitney provides personal and business deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgages, credit and debit cards, online and mobile banking, and treasury management services.