Hancock Holding Co. (HBHC) said it plans to sell $200 million in
stock as it seeks proceeds for purposes such as bolstering its
capital position and repaying an acquisition target's government
rescue funds.
Hancock is in the midst of acquiring Whitney Holding Corp.
(WTNY), a fellow Gulf Coast bank, in an all-stock deal valued at
about $1.3 billion as of Friday's close. The transaction would
unite two regional banks that survived the Great Depression and
Hurricane Katrina but now are struggling for profit growth.
Whitney had suffered amid credit-quality woes and received $300
million of aid from the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
The move to buy back the government stake follows the Federal
Reserve giving answers to banks' capital assessment plans last
week. KeyCorp. (KEY) said Friday it planned to sell stock and buy
back its $2.5 billion in TARP funds as a host of other large
lenders unveiled plans such as dividend increases and stock
buybacks.
Hancock shares closed Friday at $32.25. As of the latest close,
the stock is down 25% the past year.
-By Matt Jarzemsky, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2240;
matthew.jarzemsky@dowjones.com