Brokers Offer Predictions for Hancock Whitney Q1 Earnings

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Zacks Research raised their Q1 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Hancock Whitney in a research note issued to investors on Monday, March 24th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $1.40 for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $1.38. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.53 per share.

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

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:HWC opened at $51.86 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $4.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 1.24. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $41.56 and a one year high of $62.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $56.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $1.26 earnings per share.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Hancock Whitney by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 551,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,227,000 after purchasing an additional 96,092 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth about $1,096,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,228,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,235,000 after buying an additional 73,875 shares during the last quarter. Inman Jager Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $696,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1,987.7% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 51,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,814,000 after purchasing an additional 48,957 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.