Nomura Holdings Inc. Takes $624,000 Position in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 11,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $624,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 9,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $539,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,221,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 12,845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $703,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $141,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 838 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.09, for a total value of $40,299.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 23,019 shares in the company, valued at $1,106,983.71. This trade represents a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on HWC. StockNews.com raised Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $70.00 price target (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Hancock Whitney from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens decreased their price target on Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $62.00 price target (down from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.25.

Hancock Whitney Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $56.44 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $51.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 1 year low of $43.60 and a 1 year high of $62.40.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $367.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $368.12 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.21%.

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.