# Associated Bank (ASB) — Financial Analysis

**Exchange:**   
**Coverage as of:** 2026-Q2  
**Updated:** 2026-06-10  
**Tier:** Free primer (step 2 of 19)  
**Sibling pages:** /stocks/ASB/thesis · /stocks/ASB/memo

## Financial Snapshot

---
source: coverage-next-full
ticker: ASB
step: 04
title: Financial Quality & Adversarial Sweep
created: 2026-06-09
---

### Step 04 — Financial Quality: Associated Banc-Corp (ASB)

#### 1. Financial Statement Quality Overview

ASB's financials are largely clean with two critical distortions: the Q4 2023 and Q4 2024 balance sheet repositioning events. Both are fully disclosed, non-recurring, and disclosed with bridge reconciliations from GAAP to adjusted results. No evidence of revenue recognition games, off-balance-sheet manipulation, or aggressive provisioning. [S1]

**Primary adjustments required:**
- **FY2024 GAAP EPS $0.72 → Adjusted $2.38:** Remove ~$278M nonrecurring BSR charges (securities losses + mortgage portfolio sale loss + FHLB prepayment penalty) and the dilution from 13.8M new shares issued in Q4 2024
- **FY2023 GAAP EPS $1.13 → Adjusted ~$1.60:** Remove Q4 2023 BSR securities losses and $31M FDIC special assessment
- **Non-interest income GAAP vs. Adjusted:** NIR was negative in FY2024 GAAP ($-9M) due to securities losses; adjusted NIR ~$260M

#### 2. Statement Quality Assessment

##### Income Statement

| Item | Assessment |
|------|-----------|
| Net Interest Income | High quality — driven by contractual rate differentials; verifiable via XBRL rate/volume tables |
| Non-Interest Income | Moderate quality — capital markets and mortgage fees are volume-dependent and somewhat volatile |
| Non-Interest Expense | Good quality — personnel + occupancy + tech; no unusual capitalization patterns identified |
| Provisioning | Appropriate — ACL/loans stable at 1.34-1.35%; NCO rate improving (0.23% FY2024 → 0.12% FY2025). Not evidence of under-provisioning |
| Tax Rate | Consistent ~17% ETR; tax-exempt income from BOLI and munis reduces statutory rate |

##### Balance Sheet

| Item | Assessment |
|------|-----------|
| Loan Portfolio Quality | Good — gross loans grew 5% organically in FY2025; ACL coverage adequate; NPA/TA ratio 0.32% (Q1 2026) |
| Investment Securities | Repositioned — two BSRs removed duration risk; remaining securities portfolio is shorter-duration and better positioned for rate environment |
| Goodwill / Intangibles | Moderate — TBV/share ($21.41) is substantially below BV/share ($28.70) due to historic acquisitions. Goodwill ~$1.2B; tested annually with no impairment triggers identified |
| AOCI | Normalized — AOCI drag from AFS securities has been substantially resolved via BSR; no remaining large unrealized loss position |
| Off-Balance Sheet | Standard — unfunded loan commitments, HELOC lines; nothing exotic. No QSPE or VIE structures identified in 10-K |

##### Cash Flow Quality

| Year | Net Income | Operating CF | CF Quality Ratio |
|------|-----------|-------------|----------------|
| FY2025 | $475M | $616M | 1.30x |
| FY2024 | $123M | $580M | 4.72x (elevated by noncash BSR losses) |
| FY2023 | $183M | $443M | 2.42x |
| FY2022 | $366M | $847M | 2.31x |
| FY2021 | $351M | $530M | 1.51x |

Operating cash flow consistently exceeds net income — the multiple reflects noncash items (depreciation, provision, deferred taxes, BOLI income offset). FY2024's elevated ratio reflects the large noncash securities losses running through operating CF. The FY2025 ratio of 1.30x is appropriate and healthy for a bank. [S2]

#### 3. Key Financial Quality Metrics

| Metric | Q1 2026 | FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | Benchmark |
|--------|---------|--------|--------|--------|-----------|
| NIM | 3.03% | 3.03% | 2.78% | 2.81% | 3.0-3.5% (peer range) |
| Efficiency Ratio | 56% | 56.3% | 67.6% | 68.2% | <60% = good |
| ROA | 1.08% | 1.09% | 0.29% | 0.44% | >1% = healthy |
| ROTCE | 13.0% | 13.6% | ~4% | ~6% | 12-15% = good |
| CET1 | 10.47% | 10.49% | 10.00% | 9.39% | 10%+ = adequate |
| NCO Ratio | 0.07% | 0.12% | 0.23% | — | <0.25% = good |
| ACL/Loans | 1.34% | 1.35% | 1.35% | — | 1.0-1.5% = range |
| NPA/TA | 0.32% | — | — | — | <0.5% = good |

All metrics fall within or better than healthy regional bank benchmarks for FY2025, except NIM which is below top-tier peers (CBSH 3.5%, WTFC 3.4%).

#### 4. Adversarial Research Sweep

*Methodology: Search for short reports, regulatory actions, class action filings, and material legal proceedings. Note: Transcript analysis not performed — information sourced from 10-K risk factors, SEC filings, and web search.*

##### 4a. Short Seller / Activist Concerns

**No active short campaigns identified** against ASB. Short interest is typical for a regional bank (~2-4% of float). No known activist campaigns or public letters to the board. [S3]

##### 4b. Regulatory Actions

- **No material OCC enforcement actions** identified in recent filings
- **CFPB:** ASB is above $10B in assets (triggers CFPB direct supervision). No consent orders or public actions identified.
- **FDIC:** Normal examination cycle; $31M FDIC special assessment (FY2023) was industry-wide, not ASB-specific
- **Fair lending / CRA:** Wisconsin-based community banks face scrutiny under CRA; ASB has maintained "Outstanding" or "Satisfactory" CRA ratings per 10-K disclosures. No fair lending violations cited in SEC filings.

##### 4c. Legal Proceedings

Per FY2025 10-K: "The Company is subject to various pending and threatened legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. In the opinion of management, the ultimate disposition of those proceedings that are pending or threatened will not have a material adverse effect on the Company's consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows." [S1]

No class action filings, securities fraud allegations, or whistleblower disclosures identified in public records.

##### 4d. Balance Sheet Repositioning Controversy

The two BSR events (Q4 2023 and Q4 2024) were controversial among investors:
- Critics: Poorly managed asset-liability strategy; had to take losses to fix mistakes
- Management defense: The BSRs were deliberate and strategic — accepting short-term GAAP losses to improve long-term NIM and reduce duration risk
- Verdict: The FY2025 NIM recovery to 3.03% and ROTCE of 13.6% provide strong ex-post validation. However, the share issuance in Q4 2024 (13.8M shares) was dilutive and raised questions about capital adequacy management

##### 4e. ANC Acquisition Risk

The April 2026 ANC acquisition carries integration risk:
- Goodwill/intangible creation: ~$180-200M estimated goodwill on $604M all-stock deal
- Integration timeline: Management targets full cost synergy realization by 2028
- Nebraska market risk: Omaha CRE market is growing but exposed to data center/logistics cycle
- No identified regulatory challenges to the deal close [S4]

##### 4f. Credit Quality Concerns

Asset quality is currently benign but the CRE portfolio (18% of loans, ~$5.4B) warrants monitoring:
- Office CRE stress in national market; ASB's office exposure is reportedly limited per management
- The ACL coverage ratio (1.34-1.35%) has been stable — no signs of under-reserving
- Net charge-offs trending better: 0.23% (FY2024) → 0.12% (FY2025) → 0.07% ann. (Q1 2026) — excellent trajectory

##### 4g. Conclusion

No evidence of material adverse legal, regulatory, or financial quality issues. The BSR narrative is the primary concern — it reflected poor initial balance sheet positioning but management has credibly resolved it. The ANC integration is the near-term execution risk. Financial quality is solid.

#### 5. Adjustments Summary

| Metric | GAAP FY2024 | Adjusted FY2024 | GAAP FY2025 | Adjusted FY2025 |
|--------|------------|----------------|------------|----------------|
| Net Income | $123M | ~$362M | $475M | ~$465M |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.72 | ~$2.38 | $2.77 | ~$2.72 |
| Non-Interest Income | $(9M) | ~$260M | $286M | ~$286M |
| Efficiency Ratio | 67.6% | ~59.3% | 56.3% | ~56.1% |

*Adjusted figures exclude nonrecurring BSR charges. FY2025 adjusted ≈ GAAP (no material nonrecurring items).*

#### Source Index

| ID | Source | Details |
|----|--------|---------|
| S1 | 10-K FY2025 | Legal proceedings, balance sheet, AOCI, management discussion |
| S2 | XBRL + StockAnalysis | Cash flow statements, operating CF data |
| S3 | Web search | Short interest, activist, regulatory |
| S4 | Consensus file, ANC press releases | ANC acquisition details, goodwill estimate |

---

*Note: Earnings transcript analysis not performed. This is the filings-and-consensus path.*

## Deeper Financial Analysis

The fundamental tier ($1.00) adds 8 dimensions not included here:

- Revenue Breakdown — segment revenue, geographic mix, product-line margins
- Financial Trends — QoQ momentum, leading indicators, inflection points
- Balance Sheet — debt structure, dilution risk, working capital dynamics
- Capital Allocation — ROIC, buyback cadence, reinvestment efficiency
- Earnings Analysis — beats/misses, guidance vs actuals, transcript highlights
- Competitive Positioning — market share, pricing power, peer benchmarks
- Industry Context — TAM, sector tailwinds/headwinds, regulatory backdrop

**API endpoint:** GET /api/v1/research/ASB/fundamental

## Navigation

- Overview: /stocks/ASB
- Financials (this page): /stocks/ASB/financials
- Thesis: /stocks/ASB/thesis
- Investment Memo: /stocks/ASB/memo
- Coverage universe: /stocks