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A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Hancock Whitney (HWC - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 0.4% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Hancock Whitney due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.

Hancock Whitney’s Q2 Earnings Match as Higher NII, Fee Income Offset Cost WoesHancock Whitney’s second-quarter 2026 earnings per share of $1.55 matched the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The bottom line rose 17.4% from the prior-year quarter.

Results were supported by higher NII and non-interest income, along with a decline in provisions. Also, a sequential increase in loans and deposit balances was positive. However, higher expenses were the undermining factor.

Net income available to common shareholders was $127 million, up 11.8% from the prior-year quarter. Our estimate for the metric was $124.6 million.

Revenues Improve, Expenses RiseQuarterly total revenues were $401.4 million, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $396.4 million. The top line also increased 6.9% year over year.

NII (on a tax-equivalent basis) increased 5.6% year over year to $295.2 million. NIM was 3.56%, which expanded seven basis points (bps). Our estimates for NII and NIM were $291.2 million and 3.57%, respectively.

Non-interest income was $108.4 million, up 10% year over year. The rise was driven by an increase in service charges on deposit accounts, trust fees, bank card and ATM fees, and investment and annuity fees and insurance commissions. We had projected non-interest income of $107.1 million.

Total non-interest expenses (GAAP) increased 4.4% to $225.4 million. We had projected expenses of $227.1 million.

The efficiency ratio increased to 55.31% from 54.91% in the year-ago quarter. An increase in the efficiency ratio indicates a deterioration in profitability.

Loans & Deposits Rise SequentiallyAs of June 30, 2026, total loans were $24.6 billion, up 2.5% from the prior quarter. Total deposits were $29.6 billion, up 1.9% from the previous quarter. Our estimates for total loans and deposits were $24.5 billion and $29.2 billion, respectively.

Credit Quality ImprovesThe provision for credit losses was $13.8 million, down 7.7% from the prior-year quarter. Our estimate for provisions was $11.4 million.

NCOs (annualized) were 0.16% of average total loans, down 15 bps from the prior-year quarter.

Capital Ratios Decline, Profitability Ratios IncreaseAs of June 30, 2026, the Tier 1 leverage ratio was 10.87%, down from 11.35% at the end of the year-ago quarter. The common equity Tier 1 ratio was 13.18%, down from 13.97% as of June 30, 2025.

At the end of the second quarter of 2026, the return on average assets was 1.42%, up from 1.32% in the year-ago period. The return on average common equity was 11.52%, up from 10.63% in the prior-year quarter.

Share Repurchase UpdateIn the reported quarter, Hancock Whitney repurchased 712,966 shares at an average price of $68.28 per share.

2026 Outlook (Includes the impact of the OFB Deal)Management expects period-end loans to be up low-double-digits. Deposit balances are anticipated to be up in the low double-digit range.

NII (TE) is projected to increase 8-9% year over year. Further, flat to modest NIM expansion is expected in the second half of 2026 (assuming no rate cuts).

Adjusted pre-provision net revenues (PPNR) are expected to rise 7-8% from 2025.

Adjusted non-interest income is expected to increase 6-7%.

Adjusted non-interest expenses are expected to rise 7.5-8.5% from 2025.

Management expects to maintain an efficiency ratio below 55%.

The company expects an effective tax rate of 21-21.5%.

NCOs to average loans are expected to be in the 15-25 bps range.

Corporate Strategic Objectives (To be achieved by the fourth quarter of 2028)Management expects adjusted return on assets to be greater than or equal to 1.50%.

The tangible common equity is expected between 9-9.5%.

The adjusted return on tangible common equity is expected to be more than or equal to 15%.

Management aims for the efficiency ratio to be less than or equal to 55%.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?It turns out, estimates revision have trended downward during the past month.

VGM ScoresCurrently, Hancock Whitney has a poor Growth Score of F, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. However, the stock was allocated a score of C on the value side, putting it in the middle 20% for value investors.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of F. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

OutlookEstimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. Interestingly, Hancock Whitney has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Key Takeaways Hancock Whitney completed the $377.6 million OFB Bancshares acquisition, expanding its Florida footprint.HWC adds $1.7 billion in loans and $1.8 billion in deposits, strengthening its regional presence.Hancock Whitney expects earnings accretion, cost savings, and operational benefits from the integration. Hancock Whitney Corporation (HWC - Free Report) completed its previously announced acquisition of OFB Bancshares, Inc., the parent company of One Florida Bank, in an all-cash transaction valued at $377.6 million. It strengthens the company’s presence in Orlando, Jacksonville and the Florida Panhandle.

One Florida Bank adds approximately $1.7 billion in loans and $1.8 billion in deposits. Florida deposits will be 21% of total deposits on a pro forma basis. Hancock Whitney expects to complete the systems conversion in the fourth quarter of 2026, marking the final stage of integrating One Florida Bank into its operations.

Management noted that projected revenue synergies were not included in the transaction model, indicating additional upside potential as Hancock Whitney integrates One Florida Bank into its broader banking platform. The company expects to leverage One Florida Bank's local relationships alongside its commercial banking, private banking, and wealth management capabilities to drive loan growth and expand fee income opportunities over time.

Management expects the acquisition to complement its strong operating outlook for 2026. Period-end loans and deposits are projected to grow in the low double-digit range. Tax-equivalent net interest income is expected to increase 8-9% year over year, while net interest margin is anticipated to remain flat to modestly higher in the second half of 2026, assuming no rate cuts. Additionally, adjusted non-interest income is forecast to rise 6-7%, reflecting continued business momentum. Reflecting this momentum, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for sales suggests an increase of 1.7% for 2026 and 14.5% for 2027.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to Hancock Whitney's earnings, with management projecting high-single-digit earnings growth. Also, the company expects approximately $15.8 million in annual cost savings, while one-time merger-related charges are expected to be $30 million. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for HWC’s 2026 and 2027 earnings reflects the deal benefits. Earnings are projected to grow at the rate of 12.8% and 12.2% for 2026 and 2027, respectively.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Further, the transaction resulted in a Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio of 11.4% at closing. The transaction also met or exceeded Hancock Whitney's minimum return thresholds for IRR and ROIC, highlighting its attractive financial profile.

As per Hancock Whitney’s corporate strategic objectives (to be achieved by the fourth quarter of 2028), adjusted return on assets (ROA) is expected to be greater than or equal to 1.50% and adjusted return on tangible common equity (ROTCE) is expected to be more than or equal to 15%. At the end of the second quarter of 2026, ROA was 1.42%, and ROTCE was 14.84%.

Therefore, HWC is expected to realize operational efficiencies and financial benefits from the acquisition, which will further strengthen its position in one of the fastest-growing markets in the Southeast.

HWC’s Price PerformanceOver the past year, shares of HWC have gained 33.8%, significantly outperforming the industry's 19.1% increase.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

At present, Hancock Whitney carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Business Restructuring Steps Taken by Other Financial FirmsOn Aug. 3, HSBC Holdings plc (HSBC - Free Report) announced the sale of its retail banking businesses in Egypt and Australia as part of its broader simplification and restructuring strategy.

The transactions reflect the bank's focus on streamlining operations, exiting businesses where it lacks sufficient scale, redeploying capital to higher-return opportunities, and strengthening its core corporate and institutional banking, wealth management, and wholesale banking franchises. The moves are expected to support HSBC's target of delivering approximately $1.5 billion in annualized cost savings and achieving at least a 17% return on average tangible equity by 2028.

In the month of July, State Street Corporation (STT - Free Report) agreed to acquire Santander CACEIS Latam Securities Services, a joint venture owned by Santander Group and CACEIS.

The transaction supports STT's long-term growth strategy of expanding its global investment servicing platform, increasing its footprint in key Latin American markets, and enhancing its custody, fund administration, and foreign exchange capabilities for institutional clients.

3 Overlooked Dividend Stocks for Choppy Markets in 2026Hancock Whitney NASDAQ: HWC reported what executives described as another strong quarter of profitability, efficiency and shareholder returns in the second quarter of 2026, while also pointing to stronger balance sheet growth and continued improvement in credit trends.

President and CEO John Hairston said earnings per share improved 13% from the same period a year earlier, while pre-provision net revenue rose 6%. He also highlighted 5% loan growth, 2% total deposit growth and a sixth consecutive quarter of improvement in commercial criticized loans.

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Analysts Remain Bullish On These 3 Regional Banks“The second quarter of 2026 was another strong quarter of profitability, efficiency, and return of capital to shareholders,” Hairston said. He added that the company was “pleased to add solid balance sheet growth on both sides of the ledger to an already excellent quarter.”

Profitability Remains Strong as Net Interest Income Rises CFO Mike Achary said net income for the quarter was $127 million, or $1.55 per share, compared with adjusted net income of $125 million, or $1.52 per share, in the first quarter. Pre-provision net revenue increased 3% from the prior quarter to $178 million, which Achary said represented a 1.99% return on average assets.

Net interest income increased 3% from the prior quarter. Hancock Whitney’s net interest margin rose one basis point to 3.56%, as the yield on earning assets increased two basis points and the cost of funds increased one basis point. Achary said the bond portfolio yield rose 12 basis points to 3.35%, reflecting the full-quarter impact of a restructuring transaction completed in the first quarter and reinvestment of principal cash flows.

Loan yields declined two basis points, which Achary attributed mainly to a 12-basis-point quarter-over-quarter drop in new loan rates, partially offset by a $374 million increase in average loans. Deposit costs fell four basis points to 1.43%, mostly because of lower rates on maturing certificates of deposit.

Achary said Hancock Whitney expects deposit costs to increase in the second half of the year, as the benefit from repricing maturing CDs “will largely come to an end.” He said net interest income should continue to grow, though possibly at a slower pace than in the second quarter, and that the margin is expected to be flat to slightly higher.

Loan and Deposit Growth Accelerate On a linked-quarter annualized basis, Hairston said loans grew 10% and deposits grew 8%. Loan production was strong and line utilization improved, with growth across every business line except mortgage. The company reiterated its full-year loan growth guidance of mid-single digits.

Chief Operating Officer Shane Loper said Hancock Whitney produced $1.5 billion in loans during the quarter, up from $1.2 billion in the first quarter. Loan growth totaled $588 million, with strength across business banking, commercial, middle market, consumer and commercial real estate.

Loper said clients generally remain stable and somewhat optimistic, but cautious. He also said the loan market remains competitive, particularly because “there’s a lot of credit supply for a limited demand.”

Deposit growth was driven by a $786 million increase in interest-bearing money market accounts, partially offset by a slight decline in CD balances from maturities. Hancock Whitney raised its full-year deposit guidance from low single-digit growth to mid-single-digit growth.

Achary said the bank’s goal is to fund loan growth with deposit growth, and he described the deposit pricing environment as competitive but rational in the company’s markets. During the quarter, Hancock Whitney expanded certain promotional deposit offerings, including an 11-month CD at 3.85% in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama after previously offering it in Florida and Texas. The company also offered money market promotions at 3.75% for some existing customers and 4% for new customers.

Fee Income, Expenses and Hiring Fee income increased $2.3 million, or 2%, adjusted for the net loss on the bond portfolio restructuring in the prior quarter. Achary said the increase was driven by higher activity in investment and annuity income, insurance and trust, partly offset by lower syndication fees and Small Business Investment Company income, which he said can be unpredictable from quarter to quarter.

Hairston pointed to wealth management as a notable contributor, citing execution across the broker-dealer and trust platforms, as well as some benefit from the Sabal transaction completed last year. He also said card and merchant services continued to perform well, while secondary mortgage was in line with expectations.

Expenses rose 2% from the prior quarter, primarily because of annual merit increases and the impact of new hires during the first half of 2026. Hairston said Hancock Whitney added 15 net new bankers in the second quarter, bringing the year-to-date total to 42 against its annual goal of 50.

Loper said new bankers accounted for 26% of the quarter’s growth and that the company remains confident in reaching its hiring target. Achary noted that the company increased its operating expense guidance excluding One Florida Bank, partly reflecting the possibility of adding more employees.

Asset Quality Continues to Improve Hancock Whitney reported continued improvement in criticized commercial loans, which declined $30 million to $492 million. Nonaccrual loans increased $1 million to $114 million. Net charge-offs were 16 basis points, down from 19 basis points in the prior quarter.

Achary said loan loss reserves stood at 1.42% of loans. The company continues to expect net charge-offs to average loans to come in between 15 and 25 basis points for full-year 2026.

In response to an analyst question about changes in CECL assumptions, Achary said the company saw Moody’s baseline scenario become more conservative. He said Hancock Whitney shifted its weighting from 40/60 to 50/50 between the baseline and slow-growth scenarios.

One Florida Deal and Capital Plans Hairston said Hancock Whitney received regulatory and shareholder approval in July for the One Florida Bank transaction and expects the deal to close on August 1. He said the company updated its guidance to show the fiscal 2026 outlook both excluding and including One Florida.

Including One Florida, Achary said Hancock Whitney expects loans and deposits to be up low double digits, net interest income to rise 8% to 9%, fee income to increase 6% to 7%, operating expenses to rise 7.5% to 8.5%, and pre-provision net revenue to grow 7% to 8%. Those expectations do not include meaningful revenue synergies, such as expanding wealth products and services to One Florida clients. Cost savings are expected to be fully realized by the start of 2027.

Hairston said the immediate focus after closing will be welcoming One Florida clients and employees and completing integration, which he expects in mid- to late fourth quarter. He said the company may provide more detail in 2027 on growth expectations in Orlando and other Florida markets.

On capital deployment, Hairston said Hancock Whitney’s priorities remain supporting balance sheet growth, dividends and completing the current 5% share repurchase authorization by year-end. Achary said the company had about 2 million shares remaining under the authorization and intends to exhaust it over the second half of 2026, likely on a roughly pro rata basis between the third and fourth quarters.

Achary said the company is comfortable with tangible common equity around 9% and common equity Tier 1 capital around 12%. He said future repurchase plans for 2027 will be discussed when the company gets there.

About Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC)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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected].

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