Zacks Research Expects Weaker Earnings for Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research lowered their Q1 2026 earnings estimates for Hancock Whitney in a research report issued on Tuesday, November 26th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $1.28 for the quarter, down from their previous forecast of $1.29. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney's current full-year earnings is $5.19 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney's FY2026 earnings at $5.28 EPS.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $525.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $363.54 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.47% and a net margin of 19.30%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.12 EPS.

HWC has been the topic of several other reports. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $56.89.

Hancock Whitney Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of HWC traded down $0.40 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $59.94. 251,244 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 509,248. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $5.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44 and a beta of 1.25. The stock's 50-day moving average is $53.99 and its 200-day moving average is $50.76. Hancock Whitney has a fifty-two week low of $39.38 and a fifty-two week high of $62.40.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 22.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 59,636 shares of the company's stock worth $2,746,000 after buying an additional 10,810 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its position in Hancock Whitney by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 624,417 shares of the company's stock worth $28,811,000 after acquiring an additional 3,313 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 268.9% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 985 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 5.5% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 10,865 shares of the company's stock worth $520,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michael M. Achary sold 8,431 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.55, for a total value of $443,049.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 54,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,857,669. This represents a 13.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO John M. Hairston sold 18,000 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.44, for a total value of $1,069,920.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 254,026 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,099,305.44. This trade represents a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 27,994 shares of company stock worth $1,593,710 over the last 90 days. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Hancock Whitney's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.87%.

Hancock Whitney Company Profile

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.