Zacks Research Predicts Weaker Earnings for Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Zacks Research reduced their Q1 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Hancock Whitney in a report released on Tuesday, November 26th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will earn $1.28 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.29. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.19 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s FY2026 earnings at $5.28 EPS.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Hancock Whitney from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 20th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four 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, Hancock Whitney presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $56.89.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC stock opened at $59.94 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44 and a beta of 1.25. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $39.38 and a one year high of $62.40. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $1.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $525.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $363.54 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 19.30% and a return on equity of 11.47%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the second quarter valued at $37,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Hancock Whitney during the second quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 268.9% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 985 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hancock Whitney news, CEO John M. Hairston sold 18,000 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.44, for a total transaction of $1,069,920.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 254,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,099,305.44. The trade was a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Carleton Richard Wilkins sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.95, for a total value of $40,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $810,105. The trade was a 4.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,994 shares of company stock valued at $1,593,710 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is currently 35.87%.

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.