Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective (up previously from $29.00) on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Monday, October 27th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.40.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of ASB opened at $25.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. Associated Banc has a one year low of $18.32 and a one year high of $27.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.41, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day moving average of $25.81 and a 200 day moving average of $25.58.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.07. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 7.23%.The company had revenue of $390.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.94 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.56 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. This is a positive change from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 102.13%.

Insider Activity

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ASB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 984,537 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,312,000 after purchasing an additional 194,307 shares in the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the third quarter worth about $200,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the third quarter worth about $51,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. bought a new position in Associated Banc during the third quarter valued at approximately $456,000. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

About Associated Banc

Associated Banc-Corp, through its primary subsidiary Associated Bank, N.A., is a regional financial services company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The bank operates more than 200 branches across the Midwest, offering community-focused banking solutions for individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. Its emphasis on personalized service and regional decision-making supports long-standing customer relationships.

On the consumer side, Associated Bank provides checking and savings accounts, residential mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto financing and credit card products.