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

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the ten brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $23.67.

Several brokerages have commented on ASB. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Barclays reduced 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Associated Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd.

Associated Banc Trading Up 0.7 %

Associated Banc stock opened at $21.52 on Friday. Associated Banc has a 52-week low of $15.16 and a 52-week high of $24.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.74, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $21.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $21.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.52. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.14% and a net margin of 7.93%. The company had revenue of $321.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $330.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.09%. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.89%.

Insider Transactions at Associated Banc

In other news, EVP Randall J. Erickson sold 23,774 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.99, for a total transaction of $546,564.26. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 128,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,958,353.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Associated Banc news, Director Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total transaction of $165,089.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 54,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,108,254.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Randall J. Erickson sold 23,774 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.99, for a total transaction of $546,564.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 128,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,958,353.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 33,835 shares of company stock valued at $757,214 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASB. Steph & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 470.2% in the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 1,169 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 964 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 285.2% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,225 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 907 shares in the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 64.0% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,290 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 894 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

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.