Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Price Target Raised to $27.00 at Royal Bank of Canada

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) had its price target boosted by Royal Bank of Canada from $26.00 to $27.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a sector perform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on ASB. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Associated Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Associated Banc presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.67.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of ASB stock opened at $25.09 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Associated Banc has a twelve month low of $19.40 and a twelve month high of $28.18.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.04. Associated Banc had a net margin of 8.15% and a return on equity of 8.18%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Associated Banc will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP David L. Stein sold 29,536 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.43, for a total value of $810,172.48. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 81,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,222,406.03. This trade represents a 26.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total transaction of $460,674.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,423,934.76. This trade represents a 15.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Associated Banc by 221.6% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 163,003 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,511,000 after buying an additional 112,323 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,230,340 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $177,282,000 after purchasing an additional 261,877 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 11,595.3% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 76,370 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 75,717 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 315.6% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 540,057 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,907,000 after purchasing an additional 410,118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 114.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 96,752 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,084,000 after purchasing an additional 51,672 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.