Cetera Investment Advisers Cuts Stock Holdings in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Cetera Investment Advisers trimmed its holdings in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 22.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 41,664 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,309 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $2,280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,097,563 shares of the company's stock worth $552,539,000 after purchasing an additional 181,706 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,898,504 shares of the company's stock worth $102,557,000 after purchasing an additional 12,172 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,321,280 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,300,000 after buying an additional 193,028 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,265,146 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,229,000 after buying an additional 66,074 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,228,710 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,235,000 after buying an additional 73,875 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of HWC stock traded down $1.90 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $54.54. The company's stock had a trading volume of 367,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 594,302. The business has a fifty day moving average of $51.89 and a 200-day moving average of $55.43. The stock has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 1.05. Hancock Whitney Co. has a twelve month low of $43.60 and a twelve month high of $62.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The business 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.21%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HWC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $70.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Raymond James reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $62.00 target price (down from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 838 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.09, for a total transaction of $40,299.42. Following the sale, the director now owns 23,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,106,983.71. This trade represents a 3.51% 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 this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hancock Whitney Company 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.