Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $79.67 and last traded at $79.5050, with a volume of 19253 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $79.04.

Key Headlines Impacting Hancock Whitney

Here are the key news stories impacting Hancock Whitney this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research increased its estimates for the first and second quarters of 2028 to $1.85 and $1.92 per share, respectively, from $1.83 and $1.88. These revisions suggest some confidence in Hancock Whitney’s longer-term earnings outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research maintained a Hold rating. The firm now projects 2026 EPS of $6.42 and 2027 EPS of $7.22, compared with current full-year consensus EPS of $6.45. The changes are relatively small but indicate limited near-term earnings momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: A Seeking Alpha analysis argued that mergers and acquisitions and higher interest rates have supported Hancock Whitney’s rally, but downgraded the stock, implying that much of the favorable outlook may already be reflected in the valuation. Hancock Whitney: M&A And Higher Rates Justify The Rally (Downgrade)
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks reduced its EPS forecasts for every listed 2026–2027 period: Q3 2026 to $1.62 from $1.63, Q4 2026 to $1.73 from $1.75, FY2026 to $6.42 from $6.45, Q1 2027 to $1.72 from $1.73, Q2 2027 to $1.77 from $1.79, Q3 2027 to $1.83 from $1.84, and FY2027 to $7.22 from $7.24. The broad-based cuts are a modest negative catalyst because they point to slightly lower expected profitability.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short interest was zero shares as of August 11, unchanged from the prior report. Because the data show no measurable short position, it provides little indication of potential buying pressure or bearish sentiment.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HWC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $87.00 target price on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Stephens cut their price target on Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.78.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. The business’s 50 day moving average is $74.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.68.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) 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 net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 39.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hancock Whitney news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 22,694 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total transaction of $1,728,828.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 44,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,364,108.80. The trade was a 33.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total value of $28,005.72. Following the sale, the director owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,683,432.56. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at $6,070,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the first quarter worth about $1,714,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,790,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $304,652,000 after acquiring an additional 21,655 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 139.9% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 47,921 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,047,000 after acquiring an additional 27,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 16.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 807,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,354,000 after acquiring an additional 114,029 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

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.