Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) CEO Andrew J. Harmening Purchases 12,910 Shares

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) CEO Andrew J. Harmening purchased 12,910 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $23.25 per share, for a total transaction of $300,157.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 319,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. This trade represents a 4.21% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Associated Banc Trading Down 0.9%

ASB traded down $0.22 during trading on Thursday, reaching $24.16. 160,735 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,533,126. The company's fifty day moving average price is $21.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.88. Associated Banc-Corp has a fifty-two week low of $18.32 and a fifty-two week high of $28.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a PE ratio of 30.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.79.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $348.97 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.86 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.81%. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio is currently 106.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday. They set a "hold" rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Associated Banc from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Associated Banc

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASB. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 154.3% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,073 shares of the bank's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Associated Banc by 221.0% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,499 shares of the bank's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Associated Banc by 385.5% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,612 shares of the bank's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,280 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Associated Banc by 49.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Associated Banc in the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently 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.