The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Takes Position in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired 536,832 Hancock Whitney shares worth approximately $40.1 million, representing about 0.67% of the company. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 81.22% of HWC.
• Hancock Whitney reported quarterly EPS of $1.55, matching analyst estimates, while revenue of $403.57 million exceeded forecasts and rose 6.9% year over year. The bank maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.50, or $2.00 annually, yielding approximately 2.7%.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $83.78, compared with a share price of $75.23; however, recent insider transactions involved significant sales by the CFO and another insider.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 536,832 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,112,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.67% of Hancock Whitney as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the second quarter worth $28,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 70.9% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 67.6% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 627 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ:HWC opened at $75.23 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $6.03 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75 and a beta of 0.95. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $54.05 and a fifty-two week high of $80.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock's 50-day moving average is $75.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.19.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55. The business had revenue of $403.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $398.89 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The firm's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 6.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 22,694 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total transaction of $1,728,828.92. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,108.80. The trade was a 33.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Emory L. Mayfield, Jr. sold 4,990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.40, for a total value of $381,236.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 15,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,189,166. This represents a 24.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.92% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on HWC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Hovde Group downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and set a $74.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $83.78.

About Hancock Whitney

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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