DA Davidson Increases Earnings Estimates for Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Research analysts at DA Davidson lifted their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note issued on Thursday, October 17th. DA Davidson analyst G. Tenner now expects that the company will post earnings of $5.24 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $5.16. DA Davidson currently has a “Buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.14 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s FY2025 earnings at $5.26 EPS.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.02. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 18.63% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The firm had revenue of $525.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.54 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Finally, Hovde Group upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.89.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

HWC stock opened at $51.69 on Monday. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $32.16 and a one year high of $57.78. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $51.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $48.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a PE ratio of 12.05 and a beta of 1.26.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. DMC Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 53.9% during the 3rd quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 8,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 4.9% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 152,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,826,000 after purchasing an additional 7,126 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 19.1% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,000 after buying an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 6,005 shares of the company’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 8,431 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.55, for a total value of $443,049.05. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 54,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,857,669. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Carleton Richard Wilkins sold 800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.95, for a total transaction of $40,760.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $810,105. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 8,431 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.55, for a total value of $443,049.05. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 54,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,857,669. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,284 shares of company stock valued at $600,892 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.30%.

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.