Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 200,428 shares of the company’s stock after selling 90,117 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Hancock Whitney worth $10,256,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the third quarter worth about $669,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 7.3% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 9,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $510,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the third quarter worth about $251,000. DMC Group LLC raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 53.9% in the third quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 8,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $435,000 after acquiring an additional 2,980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 152,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,826,000 after acquiring an additional 7,126 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Hancock Whitney news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 8,431 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.55, for a total transaction of $443,049.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 54,380 shares in the company, valued at $2,857,669. This trade represents a 13.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO John M. Hairston sold 18,000 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.44, for a total transaction of $1,069,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 254,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,099,305.44. This represents a 6.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 27,994 shares of company stock worth $1,593,710. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $57.47 on Tuesday. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 12-month low of $39.38 and a 12-month high of $61.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.89 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $52.67 and its 200-day moving average is $50.23.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $525.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.54 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.47% and a net margin of 19.30%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.78%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Hancock Whitney from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.89.

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.