Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC Stock Sold by Sterling Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Sterling Capital Management cut its Hancock Whitney stake by 91.8% in the third quarter, selling 18,204 shares and retaining 1,622 shares worth approximately $117,000.
• Hancock Whitney reported quarterly EPS of $1.66, matching analyst expectations, while revenue reached $421.91 million. Analysts expect full-year EPS of $6.42, and the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average target of $84.56.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, equivalent to $2.00 annually and a 2.8% yield. Institutional investors own 81.22% of the stock.

Sterling Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 91.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,622 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,204 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Emerald Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the second quarter worth about $3,085,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 16.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 807,585 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,354,000 after buying an additional 114,029 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 139.9% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 47,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,047,000 after buying an additional 27,942 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,556,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 84.7% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 384,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,735,000 after buying an additional 176,389 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HWC opened at $71.99 on Monday. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 1 year low of $55.11 and a 1 year high of $80.13. The firm has a market cap of $5.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.48 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $73.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.87.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The company reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.66. The business had revenue of $421.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $421.75 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 20.51%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 4th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Hancock Whitney's payout ratio is currently 40.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HWC. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $87.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $79.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $84.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Emory L. Mayfield, Jr. sold 4,990 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.40, for a total transaction of $381,236.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,189,166. This represents a 24.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hancock Whitney Profile

Hancock Whitney Corporation is a financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, and the parent company of Hancock Whitney Bank. The bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutions through branches and digital banking channels.

Its products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial lending, residential mortgages, credit cards, treasury and cash management services, and online and mobile banking.

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