Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and National Bank (NYSE:NBHC) Head to Head Comparison

National Bank (NYSE:NBHC) and Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares National Bank and Hancock Whitney’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
National Bank	17.14%	8.72%	1.18%
Hancock Whitney	21.34%	11.20%	1.40%

Dividends

National Bank pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Hancock Whitney pays an annual dividend of $2.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. National Bank pays out 47.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hancock Whitney pays out 41.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. National Bank has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years and Hancock Whitney has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. National Bank is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares National Bank and Hancock Whitney”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
National Bank	$587.34 million	3.26	$109.57 million	$2.68	15.95
Hancock Whitney	$2.02 billion	2.82	$486.07 million	$4.87	14.42

Hancock Whitney has higher revenue and earnings than National Bank. Hancock Whitney is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than National Bank, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

National Bank has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hancock Whitney has a beta of 0.95, indicating that its stock price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.7% of National Bank shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.2% of Hancock Whitney shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.8% of National Bank shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Hancock Whitney shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for National Bank and Hancock Whitney, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
National Bank	0	2	5	0	2.71
Hancock Whitney	0	4	4	1	2.67

National Bank presently has a consensus price target of $46.20, suggesting a potential upside of 8.11%. Hancock Whitney has a consensus price target of $78.43, suggesting a potential upside of 11.66%. Given Hancock Whitney’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Hancock Whitney is more favorable than National Bank.

Summary

Hancock Whitney beats National Bank on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About National Bank

National Bank Holdings Corporation operates as the bank holding company for NBH Bank that provides various banking products and financial services to commercial, business, and consumer clients in the United States. It offers deposit products, including checking, savings, money market, and other deposit accounts, including fixed-rate and fixed maturity time deposits. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans and leases, such as working capital loans, equipment loans, lender finance loans, food and agriculture loans, government and non-profit loans, owner occupied commercial real estate loans, and other commercial loans and leases; non-owner occupied commercial real estate loans consisting of loans on commercial properties, such as office buildings, warehouse/distribution buildings, multi-family, hospitality, and retail buildings; small business administration loans to support small businesses and entrepreneurs; term loans, line of credits, and real estate secured loans; residential real estate loans; and consumer loans. In addition, it offers treasury management solutions comprising online and mobile banking, commercial credit card, wire transfer, automated clearing house, electronic bill payment, lock box, remote deposit capture, merchant processing, cash vault, controlled disbursements, and fraud prevention services, as well as other auxiliary services, including account reconciliation, collections, repurchase accounts, zero balance accounts, and sweep accounts. The company operates through a network of banking centers located in Colorado, the greater Kansas City region, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, Idaho, and Texas. It also operates ATMs. The company was formerly known as NBH Holdings Corp. and changed its name to National Bank Holdings Corporation in March 2012. The company was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

About Hancock Whitney

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. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans including real and non-real estate loans; construction and land development loans; and residential mortgages, as well as consumer loans. In addition, it offers commercial finance products to middle market and corporate clients, including leases and related structures; facilitates investments in new market tax credit activities and holding certain foreclosed assets; provides customers access to fixed annuity and life insurance products; and underwriting transactions products, as well as debt and mortgage-related securities. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi.