Wolverine Asset Management LLC Increases Stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC)

Key Points

• Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation by 52.6%, owning a total of 58,054 shares valued at approximately $3.05 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• Hancock Whitney announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%, with an ex-dividend date set for September 5th.
• Research analysts have given Hancock Whitney a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $66.71, reflecting positive outlooks from multiple reports.

Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 52.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 58,054 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 20,022 shares during the quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC owned about 0.07% of Hancock Whitney worth $3,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 60.5% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 391,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,517,000 after purchasing an additional 147,526 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 9.7% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,566 shares of the company's stock valued at $187,000 after buying an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 23.1% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 536,944 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,163,000 after buying an additional 100,744 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 14.8% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,964 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,000 after buying an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 1st quarter valued at $425,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on HWC shares. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Hovde Group increased their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $63.00 in a report on Friday, July 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.71.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of Hancock Whitney stock traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $60.94. The company had a trading volume of 170,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 717,184. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.22 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $58.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $55.45. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 1-year low of $43.90 and a 1-year high of $62.90.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $377.98 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $375.99 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 23.28% and a return on equity of 11.21%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio is 33.15%.

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.