Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $26.00.

ASB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Associated Banc news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.71, for a total transaction of $172,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,223,021.45. The trade was a 12.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew J. Harmening bought 12,910 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $300,157.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 319,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. The trade was a 4.21% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Associated Banc

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASB. Quarry LP raised its stake in Associated Banc by 154.3% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,073 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 221.0% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,499 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 385.5% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,612 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,280 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 49.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of ASB opened at $23.96 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Associated Banc has a one year low of $18.32 and a one year high of $28.18. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of 30.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.79.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The business had revenue of $348.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.86 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. Associated Banc’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.84%. Associated Banc’s payout ratio is currently 106.98%.

About Associated Banc

Associated Banc-Corp, a bank holding company, provides various banking and nonbanking products to individuals and businesses in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota. The company offers lending solutions, including commercial loans and lines of credit, commercial real estate financing, construction loans, letters of credit, leasing, asset based lending and equipment finance, loan syndications products, residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, personal and installment loans, auto finance and business loans, and business lines of credit.