AlphaQuest LLC Lowers Stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC cut its Hancock Whitney stake by 47.7% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 43,584 shares valued at about $2.78 million.
• Hancock Whitney reported Q1 earnings of $1.52 per share, beating analyst expectations, though revenue came in slightly below estimates and was down 19.7% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, implying an annualized yield of 2.9%; meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock Moderate Buy with an average price target of $78.14.

AlphaQuest LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 47.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,584 shares of the company's stock after selling 39,781 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC owned 0.05% of Hancock Whitney worth $2,775,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 44.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 283,722 shares of the company's stock worth $17,764,000 after buying an additional 87,227 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney in the third quarter worth about $1,169,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 26.2% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 348,993 shares of the company's stock worth $21,850,000 after buying an additional 72,433 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 126,754.3% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 457,944 shares of the company's stock worth $28,671,000 after buying an additional 457,583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth about $1,094,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In other Hancock Whitney news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,432.56. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

NASDAQ HWC opened at $68.16 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 12 month low of $52.89 and a 12 month high of $75.43. The stock has a market cap of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00 and a beta of 0.97. The company's 50 day moving average is $65.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.62.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $393.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $400.01 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.34% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The company's revenue was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HWC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a "buy (b)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $78.14.

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.

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