Wealthquest Corp Makes New $232,000 Investment in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Key Points

• Wealthquest Corp acquired a new stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB), purchasing 10,305 shares valued at approximately $232,000 in the first quarter of 2023.
• CEO Andrew J. Harmening bought 12,910 shares on May 9th at $23.25 per share, increasing his holdings to about 319,269 shares valued at over $7.4 million.
• Associated Banc-Corp declared a dividend of $0.23 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $0.92 and a yield of 3.7%, with the payment date set for September 15th.

Wealthquest Corp acquired a new position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 10,305 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 154.3% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,073 shares of the bank's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 651 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Associated Banc by 221.0% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,499 shares of the bank's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 1,280 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,518 shares of the bank's stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Associated Banc by 18.9% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the bank's stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASB has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.78.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Andrew J. Harmening purchased 12,910 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $300,157.50. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 319,269 shares in the company, valued at $7,423,004.25. The trade was a 4.21% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

ASB stock traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $24.29. 214,497 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,548,182. Associated Banc-Corp has a twelve month low of $18.32 and a twelve month high of $28.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.84.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $366.98 million for 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. Associated Banc's payout ratio is currently 119.48%.

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.