Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Raised to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday.

ASB has been the topic of several other research reports. Stephens reissued an equal weight rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Barclays lowered their target price on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $22.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Associated Banc from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a sector perform rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $22.78.

Associated Banc Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:ASB opened at $20.56 on Tuesday. Associated Banc has a 52-week low of $15.16 and a 52-week high of $22.77. The stock has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s 50 day moving average is $21.12 and its 200 day moving average is $21.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.03. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 6.86%. The company had revenue of $322.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $325.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. Associated Banc’s revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Associated Banc will post 2.11 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.28%. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 88.89%.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In related news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.18, for a total value of $55,450.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,238,449.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Associated Banc news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.18, for a total transaction of $55,450.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,238,449.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicole M. Kitowski sold 5,019 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.23, for a total value of $106,553.37. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 37,993 shares in the company, valued at $806,591.39. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Associated Banc

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ASB. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 246.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 123,979 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,121,000 after buying an additional 88,176 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 92.2% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,433,301 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $24,524,000 after buying an additional 687,552 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,389,000. Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the 3rd quarter valued at about $7,561,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,433,245 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $24,523,000 after buying an additional 166,773 shares in the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Associated Banc Company Profile

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.