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

by · The Cerbat Gem

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB – Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the eleven research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.20.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (up previously from $29.00) on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, October 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Monday. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on ASB

Associated Banc Price Performance

ASB opened at $27.11 on Friday. Associated Banc has a fifty-two week low of $18.32 and a fifty-two week high of $27.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.54 and a 200 day moving average of $25.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market cap of $4.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.84, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.81.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $390.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $377.94 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 7.23%.During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is an increase from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 102.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Patrick Edward Ahern sold 30,489 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.70, for a total transaction of $783,567.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 24,055 shares in the company, valued at $618,213.50. The trade was a 55.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total value of $56,385.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 109,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,900,927.22. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 35,951 shares of company stock valued at $925,756 in the last 90 days. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASB. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 36.3% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 13,091 shares of the bank’s stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 3,485 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Associated Banc by 17.3% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,720 shares of the bank’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 1,437 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Associated Banc by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,321,120 shares of the bank’s stock worth $52,295,000 after purchasing an additional 72,685 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 38.7% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 262,100 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,905,000 after purchasing an additional 73,081 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 319,740 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $7,204,000 after purchasing an additional 23,000 shares in the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Associated Banc

(Get Free Report)

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.

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