Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. Purchases 24,389 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 322,168 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 24,389 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney accounts for 1.4% of Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. owned 0.37% of Hancock Whitney worth $17,629,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $54,605,000. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at about $12,937,000. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 69.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 544,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,795,000 after purchasing an additional 223,275 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Hancock Whitney by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,097,563 shares of the company’s stock worth $552,539,000 after purchasing an additional 181,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $9,517,000. Institutional investors own 81.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Hancock Whitney from $68.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $73.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on shares of Hancock Whitney from $69.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised Hancock Whitney from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (up previously from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.56.

Hancock Whitney Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of HWC opened at $48.65 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.11. 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 cap of $4.19 billion, a PE ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 0.99. Hancock Whitney Co. has a 1 year low of $43.60 and a 1 year high of $62.40.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $367.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $368.12 million. Hancock Whitney had a return on equity of 11.56% and a net margin of 22.40%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Hancock Whitney Co. will post 5.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. This is a boost from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney’s payout ratio is 33.21%.

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.