Hennessy Advisors Inc. Sells 5,000 Shares of Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its holdings in Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) by 12.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 35,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Hancock Whitney were worth $1,915,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $117,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Hancock Whitney by 4.9% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 38,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after buying an additional 1,784 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hancock Whitney by 18.5% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 10,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $520,000 after buying an additional 1,699 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Hancock Whitney during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,799,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Hancock Whitney by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 122,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,840,000 after acquiring an additional 5,547 shares during the last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Price Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $59.10 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $57.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.45. Hancock Whitney Co. has a twelve month low of $41.19 and a twelve month high of $62.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a PE ratio of 13.25 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Hancock Whitney Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hancock Whitney

In other Hancock Whitney news, Director Christine L. Pickering sold 763 shares of Hancock Whitney stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.40, for a total transaction of $39,981.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,232,343.20. The trade was a 3.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO John M. Hairston sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.44, for a total transaction of $1,069,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 254,026 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,099,305.44. The trade was a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,563 shares of company stock worth $1,150,661. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on HWC shares. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Raymond James raised Hancock Whitney from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $68.00 price target on shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $60.63.

About Hancock Whitney

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.