Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Hancock Whitney Corporation has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from seven brokerages, with two hold recommendations and one strong buy recommendation.
• Brokerages have set an average target price of $66.71 for HWC shares, with recent adjustments including Hovde Group raising their target from $65 to $72.
• The company recently announced a quarterly $0.45 dividend, equating to an annual yield of 3.1%, with the ex-dividend date set for September 5th.

Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $66.7143.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on HWC. Hovde Group upped their price target on Hancock Whitney from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 554.6% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 707 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 1st quarter worth approximately $41,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 6,107.7% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 807 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the first quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company's stock.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 2.2%

HWC opened at $58.89 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.85 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $57.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.47. Hancock Whitney has a twelve month low of $43.90 and a twelve month high of $62.90.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.01. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.21% and a net margin of 23.28%. The business had revenue of $377.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $375.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. Hancock Whitney's payout ratio is presently 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.

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