Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $71.50 and last traded at $70.9860, with a volume of 259923 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $69.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.25.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 2.5%

The company has a market cap of $5.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.59 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $65.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.79.

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

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.21%.

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

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 10.8% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,878,121 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,589,000 after acquiring an additional 182,845 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the second quarter valued at approximately $60,224,000. UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 134.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 909,460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,941,000 after purchasing an additional 521,261 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 83.0% in the 2nd 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 last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 841,313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,291,000 after buying an additional 7,351 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

About Hancock Whitney

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.