Share Buyback Plan Authorized by Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Board

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, January 27th, RTT News reports. The company plans to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 2.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $27.33 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.79. Associated Banc has a twelve month low of $18.32 and a twelve month high of $28.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $26.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.83.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by $0.11. Associated Banc had a net margin of 19.31% and a return on equity of 10.25%. The firm had revenue of $393.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $382.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Associated Banc will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays reduced their price target on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Associated Banc from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Patrick Edward Ahern sold 30,489 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.70, for a total transaction of $783,567.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $618,213.50. This represents a 55.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total value of $56,385.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 109,842 shares in the company, valued at $2,900,927.22. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,951 shares of company stock worth $925,756. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Associated Banc

Associated Banc-Corp, through its primary subsidiary Associated Bank, N.A., is a regional financial services company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The bank operates more than 200 branches across the Midwest, offering community-focused banking solutions for individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. Its emphasis on personalized service and regional decision-making supports long-standing customer relationships.

On the consumer side, Associated Bank provides checking and savings accounts, residential mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto financing and credit card products.