Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $62.56.

HWC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. 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 report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and set a $72.00 price target (up from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Hancock Whitney stock opened at $51.86 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. Hancock Whitney has a 52-week low of $41.56 and a 52-week high of $62.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.47 billion, a PE ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 1.24.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.12. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 22.40% and a return on equity of 11.56%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.09%.

Institutional Trading of Hancock Whitney

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth approximately $65,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth $92,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.