Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Friday.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on ASB. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.00.

Associated Banc Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $25.15 on Friday. Associated Banc has a 12-month low of $19.40 and a 12-month high of $28.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $25.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a PE ratio of 31.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.04. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.24% and a net margin of 5.15%. As a group, analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 116.46%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP David L. Stein sold 29,536 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.43, for a total value of $810,172.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 81,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,222,406.03. The trade was a 26.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASB. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Associated Banc by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 369,548 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $8,832,000 after buying an additional 24,876 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 539,766 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $12,900,000 after acquiring an additional 34,919 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 44,700 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,068,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $438,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Associated Banc by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 56,137 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,342,000 after purchasing an additional 1,576 shares during the period. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Associated Banc

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.