Hancock Whitney Co. (HWC) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.40 on September 16th

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) declared a quarterly dividend on Sunday, September 1st, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a dividend of 0.40 per share on Monday, September 16th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th.

Hancock Whitney has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.6% annually over the last three years. Hancock Whitney has a dividend payout ratio of 30.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Hancock Whitney to earn $5.18 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 30.9%.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $53.73 on Tuesday. Hancock Whitney has a 12-month low of $32.16 and a 12-month high of $57.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.52 and a beta of 1.29. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.93.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $359.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $359.11 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 18.63%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.35 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Hancock Whitney will post 5.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Hancock Whitney

In related news, Director Frank E. Bertucci sold 2,053 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.03, for a total value of $117,082.59. Following the sale, the director now owns 22,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,286,254.62. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Hancock Whitney from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Hancock Whitney from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Hancock Whitney from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. StockNews.com raised Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $52.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.78.

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.