Insider Selling: Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Director Sells 4,000 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Director John Williams sold 4,000 ASB shares on April 28 at an average price of $28.18 for $112,720, reducing his ownership by 5.6% to 67,420 shares (worth about $1.9M).
• Associated Banc beat Q1 estimates and announced shareholder actions: the bank reported $0.70 EPS vs. $0.69 expected and $387.21M revenue, its board approved a $100M buyback, and it declared a $0.24 quarterly dividend (3.4% yield).
• Analyst stance is mixed but slightly positive: six Buy and six Hold ratings, an average price target of $30.30 (recent raises to $30–$31), while the stock trades near $27.86 with a PE of 9.67.

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) Director John Williams sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.18, for a total value of $112,720.00. Following the sale, the director owned 67,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,899,895.60. The trade was a 5.60% decrease 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.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of ASB traded down $0.30 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $27.86. The stock had a trading volume of 2,576,486 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,435,010. Associated Banc-Corp has a 12 month low of $21.61 and a 12 month high of $29.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of 9.67, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The company's 50-day moving average is $26.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.34.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 analysts' expectations of $384.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 EPS. Research analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.89 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, January 27th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASB. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Associated Banc by 46.8% during the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,279 shares of the bank's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the period. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. acquired a new stake in Associated Banc during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Associated Banc by 345.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the bank's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ASB. Truist Financial increased their price target on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Associated Banc from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.30.

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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