Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays increased their price objective on Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Associated Banc from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Associated Banc currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $23.89.

Associated Banc Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE ASB traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $23.73. The company had a trading volume of 1,766,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,339,491. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.89. Associated Banc has a twelve month low of $15.94 and a twelve month high of $24.31. The stock's 50 day moving average is $21.93 and its 200-day moving average is $21.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.93.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.06. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.14% and a net margin of 7.93%. The firm had revenue of $607.54 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.53 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Associated Banc's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.88%. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.78, for a total value of $45,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,269,730.86. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total value of $460,674.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 100,204 shares in the company, valued at $2,423,934.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.78, for a total value of $45,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 99,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,269,730.86. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,105 shares of company stock worth $671,324. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 285.2% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,225 shares of the bank's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 907 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 82.1% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the bank's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 1,438 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Associated Banc during the first quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in Associated Banc during the second quarter worth about $93,000. 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.