Analysts Set Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) Target Price at $49.75

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $50.71.

Several brokerages have weighed in on HWC. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 5th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Hancock Whitney from $50.00 to $46.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com cut Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $52.00 price target (down from $55.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HWC opened at $46.00 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.72 and a beta of 1.33. Hancock Whitney has a 1-year low of $31.02 and a 1-year 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. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $43.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.75.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 27.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Hancock Whitney news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 3,636 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was 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 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 SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Hancock Whitney news, COO D Shane Loper sold 17,690 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.81, for a total transaction of $828,068.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 71,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,330,437.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 3,636 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total value of $158,166.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,285 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,534,897.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 35.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 420.4% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 1,568 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 155.8% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 1,044 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

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.