Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Stock

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) had its target price boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $24.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the bank’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 0.46% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on ASB. StockNews.com raised Associated Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays increased their price target 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, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.78.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $26.12 on Tuesday. Associated Banc has a 1-year low of $18.63 and a 1-year high of $28.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $24.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.93.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.06. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.18% and a net margin of 8.15%. The firm had revenue of $607.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $336.52 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total transaction of $165,089.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 54,114 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,108,254.72. This trade represents a 12.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total transaction of $460,674.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 100,204 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,423,934.76. This represents a 15.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,641 shares of company stock worth $1,435,936 over the last ninety days. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Associated Banc

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASB. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Associated Banc during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Associated Banc by 82.1% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,438 shares in the last quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in Associated Banc during the second quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc during the second quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

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.