Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) Shares Purchased by AlphaQuest LLC

AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) by 67.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 55,422 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 22,316 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney makes up approximately 0.4% of AlphaQuest LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. AlphaQuest LLC owned about 0.06% of Hancock Whitney worth $3,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company's stock valued at $105,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on HWC shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised 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. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hancock Whitney currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.56.

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Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ HWC traded down $0.75 during trading on Thursday, hitting $49.61. The company had a trading volume of 439,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 504,997. Hancock Whitney Co. has a fifty-two week low of $41.56 and a fifty-two week high of $62.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.40 and a beta of 1.24.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter last year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. This is a positive change from Hancock Whitney's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.