Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Posts Earnings Results, Meets Expectations

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.66, FiscalAI reports. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 21.81%. The company had revenue of $421.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $421.75 million.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Hancock Whitney stock traded up $1.63 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $74.13. 1,273,752 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 862,657. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $5.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54 and a beta of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.20. Hancock Whitney has a twelve month low of $55.11 and a twelve month high of $80.13.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on HWC shares. Zacks Research downgraded Hancock Whitney from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Barclays upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Emory L. Mayfield, Jr. sold 4,990 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.40, for a total transaction of $381,236.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 15,565 shares in the company, valued at $1,189,166. This represents a 24.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael Achary sold 22,694 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total value of $1,728,828.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,108.80. This trade represents a 33.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

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.