Teacher Retirement System of Texas Lowers Stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 28.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,845 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,740 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $1,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 554.6% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 707 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1,132.1% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 998 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 115.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,240 shares of the company's stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 664 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at $92,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HWC traded down $2.26 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $59.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,077,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 625,573. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 1 year low of $43.90 and a 1 year high of $62.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $5.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99 and a beta of 1.05. The business's fifty day moving average is $56.18 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.02.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 23.15% and a return on equity of 11.43%. The company had revenue of $367.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.12 million. Analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. Hancock Whitney's payout ratio is currently 33.21%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 838 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.09, for a total transaction of $40,299.42. Following the sale, the director directly owned 23,019 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,106,983.71. This represents a 3.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HWC has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded 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 report on Friday. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $62.00 target price (down from $72.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. DA Davidson cut their target price on Hancock Whitney from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stephens cut their target price on Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $70.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.43.

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.