Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 17,106 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lowered its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 22.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 57,630 shares of the company’s stock after selling 17,106 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.07% of Hancock Whitney worth $3,154,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in HWC. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ HWC opened at $54.10 on Thursday. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 12 month low of $41.56 and a 12 month high of $62.40. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $56.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.31. The stock has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 1.24.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on HWC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Stephens reissued 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, January 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

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.