Raymond James Reiterates “Strong-Buy” Rating for Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC)

Raymond James restated their strong-buy rating on shares of Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $62.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $72.00.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $70.00 price objective (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Hancock Whitney from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stephens cut their price target on Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.56.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $48.65 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 0.99. Hancock Whitney has a twelve month low of $42.51 and a twelve month high of $62.40. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $52.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $367.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.12 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. As a group, analysts expect that Hancock Whitney will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 34.09%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 554.6% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1,132.1% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 998 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 917 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GeoWealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. 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.