Fisher Asset Management LLC Acquires 72,433 Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 26.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 348,993 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 72,433 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC owned 0.42% of Hancock Whitney worth $21,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 283,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,764,000 after purchasing an additional 87,227 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the third quarter worth about $1,169,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 83.0% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 850,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,827,000 after buying an additional 385,784 shares in the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $544,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 126,754.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 457,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,671,000 after acquiring an additional 457,583 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Hancock Whitney

In other news, insider Christopher S. Ziluca sold 5,227 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 33,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,283,449.57. This represents a 13.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.91% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HWC has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. DA Davidson lifted their price target 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. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $76.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.63.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 0.3%

Hancock Whitney stock opened at $66.19 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The company’s 50-day moving average is $68.47 and its 200-day moving average is $63.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a PE ratio of 11.65 and a beta of 1.05. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $43.90 and a fifty-two week high of $75.43.

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

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost 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 3.0%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.69%.

Hancock Whitney Company 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.