Brokers Offer Predictions for Hancock Whitney Q1 Earnings

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Analysts at Zacks Research boosted their Q1 2026 EPS estimates for Hancock Whitney in a report released on Monday, March 24th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the company will post earnings of $1.40 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $1.38. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.53 per share.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.12. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.26 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on HWC. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $74.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.56.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 0.5 %

HWC stock opened at $54.10 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $55.31. Hancock Whitney has a 1-year low of $41.56 and a 1-year high of $62.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. 111 Capital bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth about $236,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 94.7% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 9,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $522,000 after acquiring an additional 4,636 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,841,000. GTS Securities LLC bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth approximately $339,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.09%.

About Hancock Whitney

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.