FY2025 EPS Estimates for Hancock Whitney Lowered by Analyst

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research cut their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for Hancock Whitney in a research note issued on Monday, March 24th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the company will earn $5.37 per share for the year, down from their prior estimate of $5.38. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.53 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s Q4 2025 earnings at $1.41 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.46 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.49 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $1.38 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.73 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $6.53 EPS.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com raised Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.56.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $53.55 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $56.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.30. Hancock Whitney has a fifty-two week low of $41.56 and a fifty-two week high of $62.40. The stock has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of 10.14 and a beta of 1.24. 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 (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 prior year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Hancock Whitney

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in HWC. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings 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 last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 9,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $539,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in Hancock Whitney by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,221,000 after buying an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 12,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $703,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

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 given a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. 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.