Barclays PLC Raises Holdings in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 69.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 544,471 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 223,275 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.63% of Hancock Whitney worth $29,795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 20,358 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,221,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 12,845 shares of the company's stock valued at $703,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Hancock Whitney by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BTC Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,121 shares of the company's stock worth $390,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on HWC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating and set a $62.00 target price (down previously from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $70.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, DA Davidson decreased 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, April 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $60.56.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In related 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 sale, the director now directly 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC stock traded up $0.84 on Thursday, hitting $51.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 139,291 shares, compared to its average volume of 580,710. Hancock Whitney Co. has a fifty-two week low of $43.60 and a fifty-two week high of $62.40. The stock's 50 day moving average is $51.97 and its 200-day moving average is $55.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 0.99.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $367.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.12 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 22.40% and a return on equity of 11.56%. Equities research analysts expect that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a boost from Hancock Whitney's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.48%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.21%.

Hancock Whitney 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.