DA Davidson Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Stock

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at DA Davidson from $79.00 to $86.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. DA Davidson’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 30.63% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on HWC. Citigroup increased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $78.14.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

NASDAQ:HWC traded up $1.68 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $65.83. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 283,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 856,630. The business’s 50-day moving average is $65.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.14. The company has a market capitalization of $5.34 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51 and a beta of 0.97. 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 has a 52-week low of $52.89 and a 52-week high of $75.43.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $393.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $400.01 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.20% and a net margin of 21.34%.Hancock Whitney’s revenue was down 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney will post 6.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of HWC. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 70.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 67.6% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 627 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.