Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

ASB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective (up previously from $29.00) on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.40.

Associated Banc Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of ASB stock opened at $26.69 on Friday. Associated Banc has a fifty-two week low of $18.32 and a fifty-two week high of $27.58. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $25.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $390.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.94 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 9.45%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.56 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Associated Banc will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $0.24 dividend. This is an increase from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Associated Banc’s payout ratio is currently 102.13%.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In related news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total transaction of $56,385.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 109,842 shares in the company, valued at $2,900,927.22. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick Edward Ahern sold 30,489 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.70, for a total transaction of $783,567.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $618,213.50. This represents a 55.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 35,951 shares of company stock valued at $925,756 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASB. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,373,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 679.4% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,223,694 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,171,000 after acquiring an additional 1,938,393 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 139.1% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,748,667 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,598,951 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 4,883.7% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,385,666 shares of the bank’s stock worth $35,625,000 after acquiring an additional 1,357,862 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Associated Banc by 200.3% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,930,329 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,853,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287,458 shares in the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Associated Banc Company Profile

Associated Banc-Corp, through its primary subsidiary Associated Bank, N.A., is a regional financial services company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The bank operates more than 200 branches across the Midwest, offering community-focused banking solutions for individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. Its emphasis on personalized service and regional decision-making supports long-standing customer relationships.

On the consumer side, Associated Bank provides checking and savings accounts, residential mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto financing and credit card products.