Beacon Financial (NYSE:BBT) & Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) Critical Analysis

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) and Beacon Financial (NYSE:BBT) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Associated Banc and Beacon Financial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Associated Banc	$2.46 billion	2.31	$474.78 million	$2.86	10.51
Beacon Financial	$800.81 million	3.28	$90.27 million	$1.32	23.75

Associated Banc has higher revenue and earnings than Beacon Financial. Associated Banc is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Beacon Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Associated Banc and Beacon Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Associated Banc	19.66%	10.64%	1.12%
Beacon Financial	8.96%	9.15%	1.01%

Volatility and Risk

Associated Banc has a beta of 0.76, meaning that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Beacon Financial has a beta of 0.56, meaning that its share price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Associated Banc and Beacon Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Associated Banc	0	6	5	1	2.58
Beacon Financial	0	4	3	0	2.43

Associated Banc presently has a consensus price target of $32.00, indicating a potential upside of 6.44%. Beacon Financial has a consensus price target of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 3.66%. Given Associated Banc’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Associated Banc is more favorable than Beacon Financial.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

83.0% of Associated Banc shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.1% of Beacon Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.7% of Associated Banc shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Beacon Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Associated Banc pays an annual dividend of $0.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Beacon Financial pays an annual dividend of $1.29 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Associated Banc pays out 33.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Beacon Financial pays out 97.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Associated Banc has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years.

Summary

Associated Banc beats Beacon Financial on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

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. It also provides deposit and cash management solutions, such as commercial checking and interest-bearing deposit products, cash vault and night depository services, liquidity solutions, payables and receivables solutions, and information services; specialized financial services, such as interest rate risk management and foreign exchange solutions; fiduciary services, such as administration of pension, profit-sharing and other employee benefit plans, fiduciary and corporate agency services, and institutional asset management services; and investable funds solutions, including savings, money market deposit accounts, IRA accounts, CDs, fixed and variable annuities, full-service, discount, and online investment brokerage; investment advisory services; and trust and investment management accounts. In addition, the company offers deposit and transactional solutions, including checking, credit, debit and pre-paid cards, online banking and bill pay; and money transfer services. Associated Banc-Corp was founded in 1861 and is headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

About Beacon Financial

Truist Financial Corp. operates as a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of banking services to individuals, businesses and municipalities. The firm offers a variety of loans and lease financing to individuals and entities, including insurance premium financing, permanent commercial real estate financing arrangements, loan servicing for third-party investors, direct consumer finance loans to individuals, credit card lending, automobile financing and equipment financing. It also markets a range of other services, including deposits, life insurance, property and casualty insurance, health Truist Financial Corp. operates as a financial holding company. It engages in the provision of banking services to individuals, businesses and municipalities. The company operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Wealth; Corporate and Commercial Banking; and Insurance Holdings. The firm offers a variety of loans and lease financing to individuals and entities, including insurance premium financing, permanent commercial real estate financing arrangements, loan servicing for third-party investors, direct consumer finance loans to individuals, credit card lending, automobile financing and equipment financing. It also markets a range of other services, including deposits, life insurance, property and casualty insurance, health insurance and commercial general liability insurance on an agency basis and through a wholesale insurance brokerage operation, merchant services, trust and retirement services, comprehensive wealth advisory services, asset management and capital markets services. The company was founded on December 6, 2019 and is headquartered in Charlotte, NC. insurance and commercial general liability insurance on an agency basis and through a wholesale insurance brokerage operation, merchant services, trust and retirement services, comprehensive wealth advisory services, asset management and capital markets services. The company was founded on December 6, 2019 and is headquartered in Charlotte, NC.