Schroder Investment Management Group Invests $23.46 Million in Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Schroder Investment Management Group purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 375,436 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,457,000. Schroder Investment Management Group owned 0.45% of Hancock Whitney as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HWC. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Hancock Whitney by 6.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 25,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,586,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $191,000 after acquiring an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 21,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,357,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,419 shares of the company’s stock worth $426,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $62.10 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $68.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.83. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a 52-week low of $43.90 and a 52-week high of $75.43. The firm has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.93 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $81.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 company earned $1.40 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on HWC. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays began coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.