William Blair Investment Management LLC Has $36.76 Million Position in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

William Blair Investment Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 5.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 587,171 shares of the company’s stock after selling 35,593 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $36,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in HWC. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in Hancock Whitney by 929.5% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 6,107.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. Amundi bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at $50,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 2nd quarter worth $58,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 78.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $92,000 after buying an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on HWC shares. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated 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 issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In other news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.57, for a total value of $358,415.39. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 33,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,283,449.57. The trade was a 13.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Hancock Whitney stock opened at $65.81 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $68.43 and its 200 day moving average is $63.68. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a one year low of $43.90 and a one year high of $75.43. The firm has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $81.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.63 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.69%.

Hancock Whitney Profile

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.