Securian Asset Management Inc. Trims Stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Securian Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,506 shares of the company’s stock after selling 208 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of HWC. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 105.7% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 74,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,824,000 after purchasing an additional 38,398 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 66.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 33,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,694,000 after purchasing an additional 13,243 shares in the last quarter. LMR Partners LLP bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth $315,000. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Hancock Whitney by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 32,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,675,000 after buying an additional 2,134 shares during the period. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth $810,000. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ HWC opened at $51.58 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $57.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.29. 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 has a market capitalization of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.77 and a beta of 1.24. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 12-month low of $41.56 and a 12-month high of $62.40.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.12. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 22.40% and a return on equity of 11.56%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is 34.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HWC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 target price (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.56.

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.