Rafferty Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 106,506 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,650 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned about 0.12% of Hancock Whitney worth $5,828,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth $92,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth about $13,796,000. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 41.2% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 28,466 shares of the company's stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 8,303 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 11,076 shares of the company's stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at about $624,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company's stock.

Hancock Whitney Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Hancock Whitney stock traded down $0.69 on Friday, hitting $54.16. The stock had a trading volume of 90,522 shares, compared to its average volume of 592,712. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Hancock Whitney Co. has a one year low of $43.60 and a one year high of $62.40. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $51.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.45. The stock has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.26 and a beta of 1.05.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 22.40% and a return on equity of 11.56%. The business had revenue of $367.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $368.12 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Hancock Whitney's payout ratio is presently 33.21%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on HWC shares. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $62.00 price objective (down from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens cut their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $70.00 target price (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

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