Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. Acquires 235,363 Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Key Points

• Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation by 12.7%, holding approximately 2.43% of the company worth $109.59 million after buying an additional 235,363 shares in the 1st quarter.
• Hancock Whitney announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, yielding 3.0%, with payments scheduled for September 15th.
• Analysts have mixed views on Hancock Whitney, with some maintaining a strong buy rating and others cutting their ratings, reflecting diverse expectations for the company's future performance.

Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,089,454 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 235,363 shares during the quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. owned 2.43% of Hancock Whitney worth $109,592,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 9,854 shares of the company's stock worth $539,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 24,100 shares of the company's stock worth $1,264,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 12,473 shares of the company's stock worth $654,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 10,085 shares of the company's stock worth $528,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 20,640 shares of the company's stock worth $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 5.3%

HWC traded up $3.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $63.49. The stock had a trading volume of 1,155,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 720,536. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $58.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 1.11. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 1-year low of $43.90 and a 1-year high of $63.82.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.01. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 23.28% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The company had revenue of $377.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $375.99 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is currently 33.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on HWC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Hancock Whitney from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $62.00 to $63.00 in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Hancock Whitney from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.71.

About Hancock Whitney

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.