Piper Sandler Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Stock

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) had its price objective upped by equities researchers at Piper Sandler from $78.00 to $80.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 16.58% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. DA Davidson increased their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $76.86.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of HWC stock opened at $68.62 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.09 and a beta of 1.02. Hancock Whitney has a fifty-two week low of $50.40 and a fifty-two week high of $75.43.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $393.64 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $400.01 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.20% and a net margin of 21.34%.The company’s revenue was down 19.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Hancock Whitney will post 6.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the first quarter worth about $268,000. MQS Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at about $217,000. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at about $23,071,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 13,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $859,000 after purchasing an additional 776 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,520,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

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.