Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Key Points

• Segall Bryant & Hamill cut its Hancock Whitney stake by 43.1% in the first quarter, selling 255,906 shares and retaining 337,752 shares valued at approximately $21.5 million.
• Hancock Whitney reported quarterly earnings of $1.55 per share, in line with estimates, while revenue rose 6.9% year over year to $403.6 million. The company also declared a $0.50 quarterly dividend, representing a 2.6% yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $83.56, although recent insider sales and mixed rating changes add caution.

Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lowered its stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 43.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 337,752 shares of the company's stock after selling 255,906 shares during the quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC owned about 0.42% of Hancock Whitney worth $21,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of HWC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.5% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,790,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,652,000 after acquiring an additional 21,655 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,521,593 shares of the company's stock worth $287,935,000 after acquiring an additional 126,367 shares during the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $80,246,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 920,152 shares of the company's stock worth $58,595,000 after purchasing an additional 162,482 shares during the period. Finally, UBS Group AG increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 134.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 909,460 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,941,000 after purchasing an additional 521,261 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In other Hancock Whitney news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 22,694 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total value of $1,728,828.92. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 44,160 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,364,108.80. This trade represents a 33.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total transaction of $28,005.72. Following the sale, the director owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,432.56. The trade was a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.92% of the company's stock.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC stock opened at $77.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 52 week low of $54.05 and a 52 week high of $79.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a PE ratio of 15.10 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.12.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $398.89 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. Hancock Whitney's payout ratio is presently 39.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on HWC. Zacks Research cut Hancock Whitney from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Benchmark lifted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Hancock Whitney from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $83.56.

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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