Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Hold”

Zacks Research cut shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on ASB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays upgraded shares of Associated Banc from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $30.00 to $33.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Associated Banc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Stephens upgraded shares of Associated Banc from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $30.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Associated Banc has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.60.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of ASB stock opened at $26.39 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.36 billion, a PE ratio of 9.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. Associated Banc has a twelve month low of $18.32 and a twelve month high of $29.51.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $393.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $382.06 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 19.31% and a return on equity of 10.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is 34.66%.

Associated Banc announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, January 27th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 2.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Associated Banc news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 6,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total transaction of $184,932.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 49,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,380,377.28. This represents a 11.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.05, for a total transaction of $65,216.25. Following the sale, the director directly owned 70,959 shares in the company, valued at $1,990,399.95. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,656 shares of company stock valued at $677,789. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Associated Banc

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,538,157 shares of the bank’s stock worth $477,543,000 after acquiring an additional 545,185 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,711,346 shares of the bank’s stock worth $224,404,000 after acquiring an additional 147,372 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 3,663,163 shares of the bank’s stock worth $94,363,000 after acquiring an additional 38,900 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 50.6% in the 4th quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 2,867,172 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,858,000 after acquiring an additional 963,788 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,841,931 shares of the bank’s stock worth $73,208,000 after acquiring an additional 790,793 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

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.