DA Davidson Boosts Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Price Target to $57.00

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) had its price target increased by DA Davidson from $55.00 to $57.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock. DA Davidson also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s FY2024 earnings at $4.95 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $5.21 EPS.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $51.00 to $45.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Sunday, March 31st. Stephens reduced their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $50.71.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HWC opened at $44.27 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 1.33. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $31.02 and a one year high of $49.65. The company’s fifty day moving average is $43.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 16th. The company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.19 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $308.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $355.51 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 19.07% and a return on equity of 11.89%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.65 EPS. Analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney will post 4.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 4th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.97%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Joseph S. Exnicios sold 9,857 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.15, for a total transaction of $464,757.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 30,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,996.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 3,636 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $158,166.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,897.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph S. Exnicios sold 9,857 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.15, for a total transaction of $464,757.55. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,996.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 31,183 shares of company stock valued at $1,450,992 in the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hancock Whitney

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 136.8% in the second quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 81.0% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 151.1% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation operates as the financial holding company for Hancock Whitney Bank that provides traditional and online banking services to commercial, small business, and retail customers. It offers various transaction and savings deposit products consisting of brokered deposits, time deposits, and money market accounts; treasury management services, secured and unsecured loan products including revolving credit facilities, and letters of credit and similar financial guarantees; and trust and investment management services to retirement plans, corporations, and individuals, and investment advisory and brokerage products.