Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 208 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Securian Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,506 shares of the company’s stock after selling 208 shares during the quarter. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted 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 worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HWC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.56.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $51.58 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a PE ratio of 9.77 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $57.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $55.29. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 1-year low of $41.56 and a 1-year 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 for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm posted $1.26 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current year.

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 paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. 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%. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is currently 34.09%.

Hancock Whitney 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.