New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 196,429 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

New York State Common Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 53.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 168,842 shares of the company's stock after selling 196,429 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.20% of Hancock Whitney worth $8,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Hancock Whitney by 32.4% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,569 shares of the company's stock worth $125,000 after buying an additional 628 shares during the last quarter. DMC Group LLC purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at about $205,000. Trust Point Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Finally, Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $236,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 3,636 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $158,166.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 35,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,534,897.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Cecil W. Knight, Jr. sold 844 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.82, for a total value of $39,516.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 58,843 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,755,029.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 3,636 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $158,166.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,285 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,534,897.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,780 shares of company stock valued at $256,988. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of HWC traded up $0.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $47.57. The company had a trading volume of 285,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,774. The stock has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.13 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.18. Hancock Whitney Co. has a fifty-two week low of $31.02 and a fifty-two week high of $49.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 5th. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HWC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $50.00 to $46.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Citigroup raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $50.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Hancock Whitney from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, March 31st. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $50.71.

Hancock Whitney 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.