ASB - Associated Banc-Corp (ASB) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript
2024-01-25 23:21:06 ET
Associated Banc-Corp (ASB)
Q4 2023 Earnings Conference Call
January 25, 2024 05:00 PM ET
Company Participants
Andrew Harmening - President and CEO
Derek Meyer - CFO
Patrick Ahern - Chief Credit Officer
Conference Call Participants
Daniel Tamayo - Raymond James
Scott Siefers - Piper Sandler
Terry McEvoy - Stephens
Jon Arfstrom - RBC Capital Markets
Timur Braziler - Wells Fargo
Brody Preston - UBS
Presentation
Operator
Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to Associated Banc-Corp's Fourth Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. My name is Diego, and I will be your operator today. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. We will be conducting a question-and-answer session at the end of this conference. [Operator Instructions] Copies of the slides that will be referenced during today's call are available on the company's website at investor.associatedbank.com. As a reminder, this conference call is being recorded.
As outlined on Slide 1, during the course of the discussion today, management may make statements that constitute projections, expectations, beliefs or similar forward-looking statements. Associated's actual results could differ materially from the results anticipated or projected in any such forward-looking statements. Additional detailed information concerning the important factors that could cause Associated's actual results to differ materially from the information discussed today is readily available on the SEC website in the Risk Factors section of Associated's most recent Form 10-K and subsequent SEC filings. These factors are incorporated herein by reference.
For a reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures to the GAAP financial measures mentioned in this conference call, please refer to Pages 29 through 31 of the slide presentation and to Pages 10 and 11 of the press release financial tables. Following today's presentation, instructions will be given for the question-and-answer session.
At this time, I would like to turn the conference over to Andy Harmening, President and CEO, for opening remarks. Please go ahead, sir.
Andrew Harmening
Well, good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to our fourth quarter earnings call. I'm Andy Harmening, and I'm joined here once again by Derek Meyer, our Chief Financial Officer; and Pat Ahern, our Chief Credit Officer.
I'd like to start by sharing some highlights for the fourth quarter and then 2023 as a whole. From there, Derek is going to send an update on margin, income statement and capital trends, and then Pat will provide an update on credit quality.
Now it's safe to say that 2023 was an extraordinary year for regional banks. From rapid interest rate hikes, to credit concerns, to all our bank failures, the industry is forced to grapple with new challenges that created uncertainty in the first half of the year. Here at Associated, we weren't immune to the volatility that impacted the regional banking group as a whole, but we weathered the storm through decisive actions that bolstered our liquidity and communication that was transparent with our customers. Importantly, we also remained forward-looking. This enabled us to pivot quickly and maintain momentum with our strategic plan.
Over the course of the year, we reached several important milestones on our Phase 1 initiatives. We reached nearly $700 million in combined balances in our asset-based lending and equipment finance verticals. We surpassed $2 billion in outstandings in our prime, super-prime auto book and expanded the business within our home footprint. We launched a new brand campaign, made several product enhancements and sharpened our digital sales capabilities, driving a 19% increase in consumer checking household acquisition and a 7% decrease in attrition....
Associated Banc-Corp (ASB) Q4 2023 Earnings Call Transcript