Zacks Research Predicts Higher Earnings for Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) – Equities research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q1 2028 earnings estimates for shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the company will earn $1.85 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.83. Zacks Research currently has a “Hold” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $6.45 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s Q2 2028 earnings at $1.92 EPS.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Hovde Group cut Hancock Whitney from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $74.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen cut Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price target on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.78.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $78.22 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $74.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $6.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34 and a beta of 0.95. Hancock Whitney has a twelve month low of $54.05 and a twelve month high of $79.36.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.55. The company had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $398.89 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.37 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in Hancock Whitney by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.6% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 24,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,555,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.9% in the first quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $539,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 31.0% in the first quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 22,694 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total value of $1,728,828.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,364,108.80. This trade represents a 33.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total value of $28,005.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,066 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,683,432.56. This trade represents a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is currently 39.22%.

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.