Hancock Whitney Q2 EPS Forecast Boosted by Zacks Research

Hancock Whitney Co. (NASDAQ:HWC) – Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q2 2025 EPS estimates for shares of Hancock Whitney in a research note issued on Tuesday, February 11th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the company will post earnings per share of $1.38 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.25. The consensus estimate for Hancock Whitney’s current full-year earnings is $5.43 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Hancock Whitney’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.45 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.48 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.44 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.43 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.43 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.60 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $6.29 EPS.

Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.12. Hancock Whitney had a net margin of 22.40% and a return on equity of 11.56%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on HWC. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $72.00 price target (up previously from $64.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 target price (up from $68.00) on shares of Hancock Whitney in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Hancock Whitney from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Hancock Whitney from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Hancock Whitney from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.56.

Hancock Whitney Stock Performance

Shares of HWC opened at $59.10 on Thursday. Hancock Whitney has a one year low of $41.43 and a one year high of $62.40. The company has a market cap of $5.09 billion, a PE ratio of 11.19 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $57.53 and a 200-day moving average of $54.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Hancock Whitney in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Hancock Whitney in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Hancock Whitney during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Hancock Whitney during the third quarter worth $72,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in 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 last quarter. 81.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hancock Whitney Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. This is an increase from Hancock Whitney’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Hancock Whitney’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.30%.

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.