Schroder Investment Management Group Acquires Shares of 375,436 Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 375,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,457,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 283,722 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,764,000 after acquiring an additional 87,227 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the third quarter valued at $1,169,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 26.2% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 348,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,850,000 after purchasing an additional 72,433 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 83.0% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 850,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,827,000 after purchasing an additional 385,784 shares during the period. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the second quarter worth $544,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In other news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.57, for a total transaction of $358,415.39. Following the sale, the insider owned 33,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,283,449.57. The trade was a 13.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 0.8%

Hancock Whitney stock opened at $62.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a one year low of $43.90 and a one year high of $75.43. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 1.05.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $81.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.63 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on HWC shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays began coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.63.

Hancock Whitney 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.