Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $62.56.

A number of research firms have issued reports on HWC. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $72.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Hancock Whitney during the third quarter worth $251,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 9,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,445,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 179.7% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 26,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,347,000 after purchasing an additional 16,916 shares during the period. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 31,687 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,621,000 after purchasing an additional 5,441 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HWC opened at $50.36 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.34 billion, a PE ratio of 9.54 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.38 and a 200-day moving average of $55.33. Hancock Whitney has a 12 month low of $41.56 and a 12 month high of $62.40.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.12. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hancock Whitney will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 34.09%.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

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.