Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Rating Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $74.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James restated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (up from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their price target on Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $62.56.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Hancock Whitney stock opened at $58.97 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $57.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.81. The firm has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Hancock Whitney has a 52-week low of $41.19 and a 52-week high of $62.40.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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 last year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Hancock Whitney will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Hancock Whitney news, CEO John M. Hairston sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 254,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,099,305.44. This trade represents a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 763 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.40, for a total transaction of $39,981.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,518 shares in the company, valued at $1,232,343.20. The trade was a 3.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 18.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 10,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 1,699 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 4.8% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 122,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,840,000 after acquiring an additional 5,547 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 213.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 735,790 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,663,000 after acquiring an additional 501,259 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 20.9% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 780,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,350,000 after purchasing an additional 135,076 shares during the period. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 47.8% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 137,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,554,000 after purchasing an additional 44,344 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.