Hancock Whitney Q3 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Third-quarter profitability improved: Adjusted EPS rose 17% year over year to $1.66, while adjusted pre-provision net revenue increased 6% sequentially to $189 million. Results included the completed Aug. 1 acquisition of One Florida Bank.
• Balance-sheet growth remains strong: Organic loans grew at a 4% annualized rate and deposits at 9%, with management maintaining its outlook for low-double-digit full-year loan and deposit growth. Net interest margin expanded to 3.61%, though higher deposit costs are expected to limit further gains.
• Credit remained stable, but capital declined: Criticized commercial loans fell for the seventh straight quarter and net charge-offs held at 16 basis points, while tangible common equity dropped to 8.05% after the acquisition and share repurchases. The bank expects to pause additional buybacks until interest-rate conditions become clearer.

Hancock Whitney NASDAQ: HWC reported third-quarter 2026 results marked by higher profitability, balance-sheet growth and the completed acquisition of One Florida Bank, while management maintained its outlook for low-double-digit full-year loan and deposit growth.

President and Chief Executive Officer John Hairston said adjusted earnings per share increased 17% from the year-earlier quarter after excluding acquisition-related expenses, while pre-provision net revenue rose 8%. The company completed its acquisition of One Florida Bank on Aug. 1, adding colleagues and clients in Florida.

Chief Financial Officer Mike Achary said adjusted net income totaled $134 million, or $1.66 per share, compared with $127 million, or $1.55 per share, in the second quarter. Adjusted pre-provision net revenue rose 6% sequentially to $189 million, representing a 2% return on average assets.

Loan and Deposit Growth

Excluding loans acquired in the One Florida transaction, Hancock Whitney said loans grew at a 4% annualized rate during the quarter. Growth was led by commercial real estate lending across multiple products and continued expansion in equipment finance. Hairston said loan production remained strong and line utilization was consistent with the prior quarter.

Deposits, excluding acquired One Florida balances, increased at a 9% annualized rate. The growth was driven by interest-bearing transaction accounts, supported by promotional products, pricing and client relationships, management said.

The company expects organic balance-sheet growth to continue in the fourth quarter. Achary said promotional rates on certificates of deposit and money market accounts have helped drive deposit inflows, though they also contributed to higher funding costs. He said the bank is building liquidity not only for current loan demand but also for expected growth over the coming quarters.

Management said noninterest-bearing deposit balances declined during the third quarter, partly because some One Florida clients shifted funds into money market accounts and partly because of normal seasonality in commercial, consumer and public-fund accounts. The company expects a portion of those balances to return in the fourth quarter.

Hairston said the bank is adding treasury-services personnel and considering deposit-focused positions to support operating-account growth among small and medium-sized businesses. He said bankers hired since the beginning of 2025 contributed 55% of year-to-date loan growth in 2026 and 77% of third-quarter loan growth.

Margin Expansion and Outlook

Net interest income increased 7% in the third quarter, while net interest margin expanded 5 basis points to 3.61% from 3.56% in the second quarter. Achary said 4 basis points of the improvement came from purchase-accounting accretion tied to the One Florida acquisition.

The remaining margin expansion reflected a 12-basis-point increase in earning-asset yields, including higher bond-portfolio and loan yields. Bond-portfolio yields rose 11 basis points to 3.46% as principal cash flows were reinvested, while loan yields also increased 11 basis points. Average loans rose $1.4 billion sequentially, including $299 million excluding One Florida.

Deposit costs rose 12 basis points to 1.55%, primarily due to promotional pricing for interest-bearing transaction accounts and certain CD maturity buckets. Management expects a comparable increase in deposit costs during the fourth quarter, while projecting modest net interest margin expansion of roughly 3 to 5 basis points.

The company’s outlook assumes a 25-basis-point Federal Reserve rate increase in December, which Achary said would have minimal fourth-quarter effect because of its timing. Hancock Whitney described itself as modestly asset sensitive and said it would benefit from higher rates, although Hairston noted that substantially higher borrowing costs could eventually reduce demand for new projects.

• Full-year loan and deposit growth: low double digits
• Net interest income growth: 9% to 9.5%
• Fee income growth: 5.5% to 6%
• Operating expense growth: 8% to 8.5%
• Pre-provision net revenue growth: 8% to 8.5%

Credit Quality and Capital

Credit quality remained stable, according to management. Criticized commercial loans declined for a seventh consecutive quarter, falling $7 million to $485 million. Nonaccrual loans increased $19 million to $133 million, while net charge-offs were flat sequentially at 16 basis points. The allowance for credit losses stood at 1.42% of loans.

Hancock Whitney continues to expect full-year net charge-offs of 15 to 25 basis points of average loans. Hairston said the company remains well reserved and views overall asset quality as stable.

On capital, tangible common equity fell to 8.05%, down 173 basis points from the prior quarter. Achary attributed the decline primarily to the cash acquisition of One Florida, third-quarter share repurchases and a reduction in accumulated other comprehensive income amid an 82-basis-point increase in the 10-year Treasury yield during the quarter.

The company repurchased 1 million shares in the third quarter and has authorization for another 1 million shares this year. However, Achary said Hancock Whitney will likely pause additional repurchases until there is more clarity on interest rates, citing the bank’s 8.05% tangible common equity ratio. The company’s Common Equity Tier 1 ratio was 11.53%.

Growth Priorities

Management said it remains focused on organic growth following the One Florida closing and upcoming conversion. While the company will continue to evaluate merger-and-acquisition opportunities, Achary said such activity will be considered opportunistically.

Hairston said the bank does not plan to expand its energy-loan concentration, which is below 1% following its prior exit from reserve-based lending and midstream services. Instead, the company expects commercial real estate, construction and development, health care and commercial-and-industrial lending to be key contributors to fourth-quarter growth.

He also cited manufacturing, data-center and infrastructure investment in Mississippi and Louisiana as beneficial to the company’s footprint. At present, Hairston said those projects are having a greater effect on deposits than lending, though borrowing opportunities could increase as projects progress.

About Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC)

Hancock Whitney Corporation is a financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi, and the parent company of Hancock Whitney Bank. The bank provides banking and financial services to individuals, businesses, and institutions through branches and digital banking channels.

Its products and services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial lending, residential mortgages, credit cards, treasury and cash management services, and online and mobile banking.

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