Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Associated Banc-Corp has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with six analysts rating it a buy and six rating it a hold. The average 12-month price target is $30.30.
• The company recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.70 per share, edging past estimates, while revenue also slightly beat expectations at $387.21 million. Analysts currently expect full-year earnings of $2.92 per share.
• Associated Banc announced a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 3.4%. Recent insider sales and heavy institutional ownership were also noted, with institutions holding 82.98% of the stock.

Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twelve ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $30.30.

Several equities research analysts have commented on ASB shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research lowered Associated Banc from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Wall Street Zen cut Associated Banc from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Associated Banc from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other news, Director John B. Williams sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.18, for a total transaction of $112,720.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 67,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,899,895.60. The trade was a 5.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Dennis Deloye sold 14,299 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.26, for a total value of $404,089.74. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $604,340.10. This represents a 40.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASB. IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 4,250.0% during the 1st quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,218 shares of the bank's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Associated Banc by 46.8% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new position in Associated Banc in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Associated Banc by 345.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Associated Banc in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Associated Banc Price Performance

NYSE:ASB opened at $27.83 on Friday. Associated Banc has a 12 month low of $22.48 and a 12 month high of $29.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $27.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.79.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.01. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 10.46% and a net margin of 19.88%.The company had revenue of $387.21 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $384.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.59 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Associated Banc's payout ratio is currently 33.33%.

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.

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