First Trust Advisors LP Has $52.66 Million Holdings in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its holdings in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 841,003 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,636 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 1.01% of Hancock Whitney worth $52,655,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Amundi acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the 1st quarter worth about $50,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the second quarter valued at about $58,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 78.8% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after acquiring an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 215.5% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 1,739 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.3% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $191,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $62.57 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.02 and a beta of 1.05. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 52-week low of $43.90 and a 52-week high of $75.43. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $68.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 11.16%. The company had revenue of $81.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.63 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 35.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays started coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hancock Whitney news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.57, for a total value of $358,415.39. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 33,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,283,449.57. The trade was a 13.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

About Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ: HWC) is a regional financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi. The firm was established in April 2019 through the merger of Hancock Holding Company and Whitney Holding Corporation, each of which traced its roots to the late 19th century. This combination created one of the largest bank holding companies in the Gulf South region, with a network of branches serving both urban and rural communities.

The company’s core business activities include commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.