Hancock Whitney (HWC) Q1 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Net income for Q1 2026 was $47.4 million ($0.57 per diluted share), down sharply from the prior quarter due to a $98.6 million pretax loss from securities portfolio restructuring, while adjusted EPS rose to $1.52, up $0.03 sequentially.

• Adjusted pre-provision net revenue was $172.9 million, nearly flat sequentially, reflecting stable core operations.

• Loans grew by $33 million (1% annualized) to $24.0 billion, while deposits declined $198 million (3% annualized) to $29.1 billion, mainly due to seasonal public funds outflows.

• Net interest margin expanded to 3.55%, up 7 bps from the prior quarter, driven by higher securities yields and lower funding costs.

• The company repurchased 1.4 million shares and increased the quarterly dividend by 11%.

Financial highlights

• Net interest income (taxable equivalent) rose to $287.6 million, up 1% sequentially and 5% year-over-year, driven by higher securities yields and loan growth.

• Noninterest income was $7.5 million, but adjusted for the restructuring loss, it was $106.1 million, up 12% year-over-year and down 1% sequentially.

• Noninterest expense increased 1% sequentially and 8% year-over-year to $220.7 million, mainly from higher personnel and technology costs.

• Efficiency ratio was 55.43%, up slightly from 54.93% in Q4 2025.

• Allowance for credit losses was $343.7 million (1.43% of loans), unchanged from year-end.

Outlook and guidance

• Management expects mid-single digit year-over-year loan growth and low-single digit deposit growth for 2026.

• NII (taxable equivalent) projected to increase 5–6% from FY25, with modest NIM expansion assuming no rate cuts.

• Adjusted PPNR expected to rise 4.5–5.5% from FY25; adjusted noninterest income to grow 4–5%.

• Net charge-offs forecasted to average 0.15–0.25% of loans for full year 2026.

• Fee income guidance is 4%-5% growth for 2026, with bias toward the upper end.