Research Analysts Offer Predictions for Hancock Whitney Co.’s FY2024 Earnings (NASDAQ:HWC)

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Stock analysts at DA Davidson lifted their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, April 17th. DA Davidson analyst G. Tenner now anticipates that the company will earn $4.95 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $4.90. DA Davidson currently has a “Buy” rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $4.80 per share. DA Davidson also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s FY2025 earnings at $5.21 EPS.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 16th. The company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 19.07%. The business had revenue of $308.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $355.51 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 EPS.

HWC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $52.00 price target (down previously from $55.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Hancock Whitney from $51.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.75.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 1.5 %

HWC opened at $42.66 on Thursday. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $31.02 and a one year high of $49.65. The company has a market cap of $3.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.94 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.43.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 81.0% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 760 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 151.1% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 904 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 544 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Finally, OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hancock Whitney news, COO D Shane Loper sold 17,690 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.81, for a total transaction of $828,068.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 71,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,330,437.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Joseph S. Exnicios sold 9,857 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.15, for a total value of $464,757.55. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,421,996.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO D Shane Loper sold 17,690 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.81, for a total value of $828,068.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 71,148 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,330,437.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,225 shares of company stock valued at $1,634,014. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.81%. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 27.97%.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

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.