Do Hancock Whitney's (NASDAQ:HWC) Earnings Warrant Your Attention?

The excitement of investing in a company that can reverse its fortunes is a big draw for some speculators, so even companies that have no revenue, no profit, and a record of falling short, can manage to find investors. Unfortunately, these high risk investments often have little probability of ever paying off, and many investors pay a price to learn their lesson. While a well funded company may sustain losses for years, it will need to generate a profit eventually, or else investors will move on and the company will wither away.

Despite being in the age of tech-stock blue-sky investing, many investors still adopt a more traditional strategy; buying shares in profitable companies like Hancock Whitney (NASDAQ:HWC). While this doesn't necessarily speak to whether it's undervalued, the profitability of the business is enough to warrant some appreciation - especially if its growing.

View our latest analysis for Hancock Whitney

How Quickly Is Hancock Whitney Increasing Earnings Per Share?

If you believe that markets are even vaguely efficient, then over the long term you'd expect a company's share price to follow its earnings per share (EPS) outcomes. That makes EPS growth an attractive quality for any company. It certainly is nice to see that Hancock Whitney has managed to grow EPS by 17% per year over three years. As a general rule, we'd say that if a company can keep up that sort of growth, shareholders will be beaming.

One way to double-check a company's growth is to look at how its revenue, and earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) margins are changing. It's noted that Hancock Whitney's revenue from operations was lower than its revenue in the last twelve months, so that could distort our analysis of its margins. While we note Hancock Whitney achieved similar EBIT margins to last year, revenue grew by a solid 2.8% to US$1.4b. That's progress.

In the chart below, you can see how the company has grown earnings and revenue, over time. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

The trick, as an investor, is to find companies that are going to perform well in the future, not just in the past. While crystal balls don't exist, you can check our visualization of consensus analyst forecasts for Hancock Whitney's future EPS 100% free.

Are Hancock Whitney Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

It should give investors a sense of security owning shares in a company if insiders also own shares, creating a close alignment their interests. Hancock Whitney followers will find comfort in knowing that insiders have a significant amount of capital that aligns their best interests with the wider shareholder group. To be specific, they have US$23m worth of shares. That's a lot of money, and no small incentive to work hard. Despite being just 0.8% of the company, the value of that investment is enough to show insiders have plenty riding on the venture.

Should You Add Hancock Whitney To Your Watchlist?

If you believe that share price follows earnings per share you should definitely be delving further into Hancock Whitney's strong EPS growth. This EPS growth rate is something the company should be proud of, and so it's no surprise that insiders are holding on to a considerable chunk of shares. Fast growth and confident insiders should be enough to warrant further research, so it would seem that it's a good stock to follow. It is worth noting though that we have found 2 warning signs for Hancock Whitney (1 shouldn't be ignored!) that you need to take into consideration.

There's always the possibility of doing well buying stocks that are not growing earnings and do not have insiders buying shares. But for those who consider these important metrics, we encourage you to check out companies that do have those features. You can access a free list of them here.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.