Analysts Set Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) PT at $75.63

Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) have received an average rating of “Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $75.6250.

Several research firms have commented on HWC. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Zacks Research raised Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st.

Insider Activity at Hancock Whitney

In other news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.57, for a total value of $358,415.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 33,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,283,449.57. The trade was a 13.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Amundi acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the 1st quarter worth $50,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 51,664 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,710,000 after purchasing an additional 2,255 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 22.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $197,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.2% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 287,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,078,000 after purchasing an additional 11,551 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 951.9% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 123,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,494,000 after purchasing an additional 112,042 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

NASDAQ HWC opened at $63.41 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $67.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.79. Hancock Whitney has a 12-month low of $43.90 and a 12-month high of $75.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.16 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $81.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.63 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.40 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hancock Whitney will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 35.21%.

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.