Great Lakes Advisors LLC Has $14.45 Million Stock Position in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 29.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 264,006 shares of the company’s stock after selling 112,445 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $14,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HWC. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter worth about $49,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,581 shares of the company’s stock worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of HWC opened at $50.36 on Thursday. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 12-month low of $41.56 and a 12-month 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 firm has a market capitalization of $4.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.54 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $57.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.33.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is presently 34.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HWC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective (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 Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective (up from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

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.