Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $30.30.

ASB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Stephens upgraded Associated Banc from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $30.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th.

Associated Banc Trading Down 0.0%

ASB opened at $27.83 on Friday. Associated Banc has a one year low of $22.48 and a one year high of $29.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.62 billion, a PE ratio of 9.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $27.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.01. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 10.46% and a net margin of 19.88%.The firm had revenue of $387.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $384.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is 33.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Associated Banc news, Director John B. Williams sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.18, for a total transaction of $112,720.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,899,895.60. This represents a 5.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Dennis Deloye sold 14,299 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.26, for a total value of $404,089.74. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,385 shares in the company, valued at $604,340.10. This represents a 40.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the third quarter worth $1,769,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Associated Banc by 24.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 984,537 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,312,000 after acquiring an additional 194,307 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Associated Banc by 7.2% during the third quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 877,828 shares of the bank’s stock worth $22,569,000 after acquiring an additional 59,184 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the third quarter worth $1,289,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its position in shares of Associated Banc by 50.6% during the third quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 125,433 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,225,000 after acquiring an additional 42,133 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

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.