Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on ASB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $24.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.89.

Associated Banc Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Associated Banc stock opened at $23.56 on Thursday. Associated Banc has a 12-month low of $16.19 and a 12-month high of $24.31. The stock has a market cap of $3.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business’s 50 day moving average is $21.99 and its 200-day moving average is $21.57.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.06. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 8.15%. The company had revenue of $607.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $336.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Associated Banc will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is a positive change from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is 73.33%.

Insider Transactions at Associated Banc

In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total transaction of $460,674.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,423,934.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.78, for a total value of $45,560.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,269,730.86. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total value of $460,674.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,204 shares in the company, valued at $2,423,934.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 29,105 shares of company stock valued at $671,324. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management raised its position in Associated Banc by 43.3% in the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 4,050,813 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $87,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224,216 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Associated Banc by 291.3% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,563,274 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,063,000 after purchasing an additional 1,163,807 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Associated Banc by 12.0% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,149,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $24,309,000 after purchasing an additional 123,271 shares during the last quarter. Interval Partners LP raised its position in Associated Banc by 27.6% in the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 442,947 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,368,000 after purchasing an additional 95,928 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&G PLC raised its position in Associated Banc by 2.9% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 423,903 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,326,000 after purchasing an additional 12,142 shares during the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.