Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Barclays Analyst Says

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) had its price target upped by Barclays from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the bank’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 17.50% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on ASB. StockNews.com raised Associated Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Associated Banc from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.00.

Associated Banc Price Performance

NYSE ASB traded down $0.06 during trading on Thursday, reaching $23.83. 529,844 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,445,718. Associated Banc has a 1-year low of $19.40 and a 1-year high of $28.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $25.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.67. The company has a market cap of $3.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $607.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $336.52 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 8.15%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the company’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 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 15.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP David L. Stein sold 29,536 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.43, for a total value of $810,172.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 81,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,222,406.03. This represents a 26.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASB. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in Associated Banc by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 55,365 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,171,000 after buying an additional 6,852 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Associated Banc by 54.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,729 shares of the bank’s stock worth $735,000 after purchasing an additional 12,296 shares in the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 57,831 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 32,497 shares of the bank’s stock worth $687,000 after purchasing an additional 4,003 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc during the second quarter worth approximately $384,000. 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.