Zacks Research Downgrades Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) to Hold

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

HWC has been the subject of several other research reports. DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Hovde Group lowered Hancock Whitney from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $74.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Friday, June 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $83.56.

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ HWC opened at $76.29 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $72.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.80. Hancock Whitney has a 52-week low of $54.05 and a 52-week high of $79.36. The company has a market capitalization of $6.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.96 and a beta of 0.95.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.55. The company had revenue of $403.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $398.89 million. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 11.36%. Hancock Whitney’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.37 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Hancock Whitney

In other Hancock Whitney news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total value of $28,005.72. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,683,432.56. The trade was a 1.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 22,694 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.18, for a total transaction of $1,728,828.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 44,160 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,108.80. This trade represents a 33.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hancock Whitney

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 70.9% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 67.6% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 627 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.