Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 26.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,117 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,406 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $1,447,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 929.5% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 6,107.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 807 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. Amundi purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Hancock Whitney by 78.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of HWC stock opened at $71.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 1.05. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 1-year low of $43.90 and a 1-year high of $75.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.90.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $81.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.63 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is currently 31.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In related news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.57, for a total value of $358,415.39. Following the transaction, the insider owned 33,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,283,449.57. This trade represents a 13.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HWC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Monday, December 29th. DA Davidson raised their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 price target for the company. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.25.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ: HWC) is a regional financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi. The firm was established in April 2019 through the merger of Hancock Holding Company and Whitney Holding Corporation, each of which traced its roots to the late 19th century. This combination created one of the largest bank holding companies in the Gulf South region, with a network of branches serving both urban and rural communities.

The company’s core business activities include commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.