Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC Shares Sold by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 36.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 282,295 shares of the company’s stock after selling 164,614 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned about 0.35% of Hancock Whitney worth $20,337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 6.6% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 543,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,146,000 after acquiring an additional 33,672 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 57.2% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 152,638 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,996,000 after purchasing an additional 55,514 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 12.8% in the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the third quarter valued at about $396,000. Finally, Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 42,879 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,089,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Recent Hancock Whitney Headlines

These are some of the HWC headlines that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson maintained a Buy rating, despite reducing its price target from $86 to $80. The revised target still implies 22.5% upside from the cited $65.28 share price. DA Davidson ratings
• Neutral Sentiment: Hancock Whitney agreed to acquire Trustmark in an all-stock transaction valued at about $3.2 billion. The combination could expand the bank’s scale, but investors are assessing whether the potential benefits outweigh dilution and execution risks. Hancock Whitney to buy Trustmark in $3.2B deal
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research reportedly expects lower earnings, while Zacks also highlighted dilution and integration risks tied to the Trustmark transaction. Separately, a law firm is investigating whether shareholders are receiving a fair price in the deal, adding another source of uncertainty. Zacks Research predicts lower earnings Zacks analysis of Trustmark deal risks Shareholder fairness investigation

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on HWC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $79.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Citigroup reduced their price target on Hancock Whitney from $87.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Stephens reduced their target price on Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.95.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Emory L. Mayfield, Jr. sold 4,990 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.40, for a total value of $381,236.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 15,565 shares in the company, valued at $1,189,166. The trade was a 24.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HWC traded up $0.28 during trading on Friday, hitting $65.28. 2,907,785 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,138,428. The company has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $72.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.03. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 12-month low of $55.76 and a 12-month high of $80.13.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 20th. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.66. The firm had revenue of $421.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $421.75 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 20.51%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.42 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.24%.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney is a bank holding company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, whose principal subsidiary is Hancock Whitney Bank. The company provides personal and business banking services, including deposit accounts, loans, treasury management, mortgage lending, and online and mobile banking. It also offers wealth management, trust, and investment services. The bank serves customers across the Gulf South, with operations in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, and Texas. Its history includes roots in Hancock County Bank, founded in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, in 1899, and Whitney National Bank, established in New Orleans in 1883.