Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Reaches New 1-Year High at $22.32

Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $22.32 and last traded at $22.03, with a volume of 129131 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $21.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $23.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Barclays boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $23.13.

Associated Banc Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.93. The company has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.99.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.03. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 6.86%. The company had revenue of $322.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.00 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Associated Banc's revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. Associated Banc's payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director John B. Williams sold 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total value of $52,785.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 62,876 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,225.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Associated Banc news, Director John B. Williams sold 2,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total value of $52,785.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 62,876 shares in the company, valued at $1,229,225.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.02, for a total value of $105,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 50,126 shares in the company, valued at $1,053,648.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 26,729 shares of company stock worth $561,450. Corporate insiders own 1.45% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASB. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 72.2% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 82,919 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,784,000 after buying an additional 34,773 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 186,780 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,018,000 after purchasing an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC now owns 113,844 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,449,000 after purchasing an additional 13,624 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 42,800 shares of the bank's stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 36,478 shares of the bank's stock valued at $785,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company's stock.

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.

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