First Trust Advisors LP Sells 300,938 Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

First Trust Advisors LP cut its position in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 35.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 551,571 shares of the company's stock after selling 300,938 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.68% of Hancock Whitney worth $35,074,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Amundi bought a new position in Hancock Whitney during the first quarter valued at approximately $50,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 51,664 shares of the company's stock worth $2,710,000 after acquiring an additional 2,255 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 22.9% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,755 shares of the company's stock worth $197,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 287,471 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,078,000 after purchasing an additional 11,551 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 951.9% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 123,812 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,494,000 after purchasing an additional 112,042 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on HWC shares. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $87.00 target price on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Benchmark boosted their target price on Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $83.56.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total transaction of $28,005.72. Following the transaction, the director owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,432.56. The trade was a 1.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.92% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hancock Whitney Trading Down 1.0%

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $75.46 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.80 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.23 and a 200 day moving average of $68.87. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 52 week low of $54.05 and a 52 week high of $79.36.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The business had revenue of $403.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $398.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.22%.

Hancock Whitney Profile

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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