Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

HWC has been the topic of several other research reports. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.86.

Hancock Whitney Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of HWC opened at $66.83 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The stock has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a PE ratio of 13.72 and a beta of 1.02. Hancock Whitney has a 1 year low of $51.17 and a 1 year high of $75.43. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.27.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $393.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $400.01 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.20% and a net margin of 21.34%.Hancock Whitney’s quarterly revenue was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.38 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Hancock Whitney will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 70.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 67.6% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.