Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Sets New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $24.31 and last traded at $24.04, with a volume of 197268 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $23.55.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. This is a positive change from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ASB shares. Baird R W lowered Associated Banc from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Barclays raised their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.89.

Associated Banc Stock Down 1.2 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $21.93 and a 200-day moving average of $21.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.93.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $607.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.52 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 8.15%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Associated Banc news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,637 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,269,730.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 99,637 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,269,730.86. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total value of $165,089.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 54,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,108,254.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,105 shares of company stock valued at $671,324. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. M&G PLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 2.9% during the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 423,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,326,000 after purchasing an additional 12,142 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 82.1% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 1,438 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 7.3% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 17,220 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 1,170 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 2.8% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,461 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $419,000 after buying an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 134.7% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 129,939 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,799,000 after buying an additional 74,574 shares during 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.