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

Key Points

• Truist Financial raised its price target for Associated Banc's stock from $26.00 to $27.00, suggesting a potential upside of 5.43%.
• Multiple brokerages have varied assessments, with Robert W. Baird increasing its target to $28.00 while others maintain a "hold" or "neutral" rating.
• The recent quarterly earnings report showed $0.65 earnings per share, exceeding expectations, and a significant increase in CEO ownership due to recent stock purchases.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by analysts at Truist Financial from $26.00 to $27.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "hold" rating on the bank's stock. Truist Financial's price objective points to a potential upside of 5.43% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on ASB. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens cut their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $27.78.

Associated Banc Price Performance

NYSE ASB traded up $0.01 on Monday, hitting $25.61. 365,717 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,544,605. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $24.27 and a 200-day moving average of $23.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Associated Banc has a 52 week low of $18.32 and a 52 week high of $28.18. The stock has a market cap of $4.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.80.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $366.98 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $362.78 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 8.86%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other news, CEO Andrew J. Harmening acquired 12,910 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.25 per share, for a total transaction of $300,157.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 319,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. This trade represents a 4.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of Associated Banc in the 4th quarter valued at $717,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,066,871 shares of the bank's stock worth $431,798,000 after buying an additional 1,444,068 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Associated Banc by 75.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,088,796 shares of the bank's stock valued at $26,022,000 after purchasing an additional 467,183 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Associated Banc in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,144,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 20,860 shares of the bank's stock valued at $499,000 after acquiring an additional 1,436 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company's stock.

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.

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