Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.40.

ASB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (up from $29.00) on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Associated Banc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of ASB stock opened at $26.45 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. Associated Banc has a 12-month low of $18.32 and a 12-month high of $27.58. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $25.90 and a 200-day moving average of $25.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.79.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.07. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 7.23%.The business had revenue of $390.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.94 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.56 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Associated Banc will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Patrick Edward Ahern sold 30,489 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.70, for a total value of $783,567.30. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 24,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $618,213.50. The trade was a 55.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 109,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,900,927.22. This trade represents a 1.91% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 35,951 shares of company stock worth $925,756 over the last quarter. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ASB. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 154,933 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,779,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Associated Banc by 46.8% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the bank’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Associated Banc by 0.5% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 80,677 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,074,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 2.0% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 27,354 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $667,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 17.9% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,688 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

About Associated Banc

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.