Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Head-To-Head Survey

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) and Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, earnings, risk and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Hancock Whitney and Fifth Third Bancorp’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hancock Whitney	19.30%	11.47%	1.28%
Fifth Third Bancorp	16.58%	14.58%	1.19%

Dividends

Hancock Whitney pays an annual dividend of $1.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Fifth Third Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Hancock Whitney pays out 35.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fifth Third Bancorp pays out 49.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Fifth Third Bancorp has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Fifth Third Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Hancock Whitney and Fifth Third Bancorp”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hancock Whitney	$1.91 billion	2.66	$392.60 million	$4.46	13.25
Fifth Third Bancorp	$12.64 billion	2.35	$2.35 billion	$3.01	14.73

Fifth Third Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than Hancock Whitney. Hancock Whitney is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fifth Third Bancorp, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

Hancock Whitney has a beta of 1.27, indicating that its share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fifth Third Bancorp has a beta of 1.24, indicating that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

81.2% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.8% of Fifth Third Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 1.1% of Hancock Whitney shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Fifth Third Bancorp shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Hancock Whitney and Fifth Third Bancorp, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hancock Whitney	0	2	6	1	2.89
Fifth Third Bancorp	0	9	10	0	2.53

Hancock Whitney presently has a consensus price target of $60.63, indicating a potential upside of 2.58%. Fifth Third Bancorp has a consensus price target of $45.92, indicating a potential upside of 3.56%. Given Fifth Third Bancorp’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Fifth Third Bancorp is more favorable than Hancock Whitney.

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. The company also provides commercial and industrial loans including real and non-real estate loans; construction and land development loans; and residential mortgages, as well as consumer loans. In addition, it offers commercial finance products to middle market and corporate clients, including leases and related structures; facilitates investments in new market tax credit activities and holding certain foreclosed assets; provides customers access to fixed annuity and life insurance products; and underwriting transactions products, as well as debt and mortgage-related securities. The company was founded in 1899 and is headquartered in Gulfport, Mississippi.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Fifth Third Bank, National Association that engages in the provision of a range of financial products and services in the United States. It operates through three segments: Commercial Banking, Consumer and Small Business Banking, and Wealth and Asset Management. The Commercial Banking segment offers credit intermediation, cash management, and financial services; lending and depository products; and cash management, foreign exchange and international trade finance, derivatives and capital markets services, asset-based lending, real estate finance, public finance, commercial leasing, and syndicated finance for business, government, and professional customers. The Consumer and Small Banking segment provides a range of deposit and loan products to individuals and small businesses; home equity loans and lines of credit; credit cards; and cash management services. This segment also engages in the residential mortgage that include origination, retention and servicing of residential mortgage loans, sales and securitizations of loans, and hedging activities; indirect lending, including extending loans to consumers through automobile dealers, motorcycle dealers, powersport dealers, recreational vehicle dealers, and marine dealers; and home improvement and solar energy installation loans through contractors and installers. The Wealth & Asset Management segment provides various wealth management services for individuals, companies, and not-for-profit organizations. It offers retail brokerage services to individual clients; and broker dealer services to the institutional marketplace. This segment also provides wealth planning, investment management, banking, insurance, and trust and estate services; and advisory services for institutional clients comprising middle market businesses, non-profits, states, and municipalities. The company was founded in 1858 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.