Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Posted by George Bondi on Jul 2nd, 2026

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC – Free Report) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Benchmark initiated coverage on Hancock Whitney in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $84.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on Hancock Whitney from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Weiss Ratings cut Hancock Whitney from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on Hancock Whitney from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Hancock Whitney has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.25.

Read Our Latest Analysis on Hancock Whitney

Hancock Whitney Stock Up 1.3%

HWC stock opened at $75.66 on Tuesday. Hancock Whitney has a 52 week low of $54.05 and a 52 week high of $76.38. The company has a market capitalization of $6.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.54 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $69.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The company reported $1.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.04. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 21.34% and a return on equity of 11.20%. The company had revenue of $393.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $400.01 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.38 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Hancock Whitney will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hancock Whitney Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.07%.

Insider Activity at Hancock Whitney

In other news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 417 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.16, for a total transaction of $28,005.72. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 25,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,683,432.56. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.92% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hancock Whitney

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at $1,094,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Hancock Whitney by 26.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 348,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,850,000 after purchasing an additional 72,433 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 4th quarter worth about $6,070,000. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the 3rd quarter worth about $23,457,000. Finally, Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at about $576,000. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hancock Whitney

(Get Free Report)

Hancock Whitney Corporation (NASDAQ: HWC) is a regional financial services company headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi. The firm was established in April 2019 through the merger of Hancock Holding Company and Whitney Holding Corporation, each of which traced its roots to the late 19th century. This combination created one of the largest bank holding companies in the Gulf South region, with a network of branches serving both urban and rural communities.

The company’s core business activities include commercial banking, retail banking and wealth management services.