Associated Banc-Corp to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.20 (NYSE:ASB)

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 26th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 1st will be given a dividend of 0.20 per share by the bank on Wednesday, June 15th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 31st.

Associated Banc has increased its dividend payment by an average of 7.0% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Associated Banc has a payout ratio of 36.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Associated Banc to earn $2.20 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 36.4%.

NYSE:ASB opened at $20.21 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $22.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.22. The company has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a PE ratio of 9.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Associated Banc has a 52-week low of $18.40 and a 52-week high of $25.78.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 21st. The bank reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.09. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.67% and a net margin of 29.68%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.58 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 1.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $23.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, January 18th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Associated Banc in a research note on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Associated Banc from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $26.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Monday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.60.

In other news, EVP Matthew R. Braeger sold 10,994 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.47, for a total value of $280,017.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Lith Karen Van sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.86, for a total value of $102,870.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 25,394 shares of company stock worth $623,240. Company insiders own 3.04% of the company’s stock.

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Associated Banc by 160.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,913,446 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $65,815,000 after acquiring an additional 1,796,682 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in Associated Banc by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 17,540,484 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $396,237,000 after acquiring an additional 375,548 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Associated Banc by 60.1% during the second quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 459,281 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,405,000 after acquiring an additional 172,434 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Associated Banc by 39.5% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 491,891 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $11,112,000 after acquiring an additional 139,188 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in Associated Banc by 490.9% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 157,633 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,562,000 after acquiring an additional 130,955 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.86% of the company’s stock.

Associated Banc Company Profile (Get Rating)

Associated Banc-Corp, a bank holding company, provides various banking and nonbanking products to individuals and businesses in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota. The company operates through three segments: Corporate and Commercial Specialty; Community, Consumer, and Business; and Risk Management and Shared Services.

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