Allianz Asset Management GmbH Sells 126,235 Shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation $HWC

Allianz Asset Management GmbH reduced its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ:HWC) by 63.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 71,858 shares of the company’s stock after selling 126,235 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned approximately 0.08% of Hancock Whitney worth $4,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 15.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,695,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,309,000 after buying an additional 229,615 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,224,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Hancock Whitney by 83.0% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 850,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,827,000 after acquiring an additional 385,784 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.9% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 841,313 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,291,000 after purchasing an additional 7,351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 672,115 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,579,000 after purchasing an additional 2,837 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HWC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Hancock Whitney from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.25.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HWC opened at $71.99 on Wednesday. Hancock Whitney Corporation has a twelve month low of $43.90 and a twelve month high of $75.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a PE ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50 day moving average is $67.14 and its 200 day moving average is $62.71.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 20th. The company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $81.55 million for 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney Corporation will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 31.69%.

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 completion of the transaction, the insider 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.91% 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.