Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Sells 92,558 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp $ASB

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors trimmed its stake in Associated Banc by 0.9%, selling 92,558 shares and now holds 9,848,848 shares (~5.94%) valued at $253.2M.
• Associated Banc beat quarterly expectations (EPS $0.80 vs $0.69; revenue $393.5M vs $382.1M), and its board authorized a $100.0M buyback (~2.2% of shares) while declaring a $0.24 quarterly dividend (3.8% yield).
• Insiders have been selling (director sold 6,600 shares; EVP sold 2,135; 25,791 shares sold over the last 90 days), while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus with a ~$29.20 target.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its holdings in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,848,848 shares of the bank's stock after selling 92,558 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 5.94% of Associated Banc worth $253,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jackson Creek Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,769,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc during the third quarter worth $1,289,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in Associated Banc by 24.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 984,537 shares of the bank's stock valued at $25,312,000 after acquiring an additional 194,307 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Associated Banc by 19.4% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 250,285 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,435,000 after acquiring an additional 40,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its holdings in Associated Banc by 50.6% in the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 125,433 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,225,000 after acquiring an additional 42,133 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 6,600 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.02, for a total transaction of $184,932.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 49,264 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,380,377.28. The trade was a 11.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total transaction of $56,385.35. Following the transaction, 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. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 25,791 shares of company stock valued at $734,175 over the last ninety days. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays dropped their price target on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $28.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $29.20.

Associated Banc Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $25.15 on Friday. Associated Banc-Corp has a 1-year low of $18.32 and a 1-year high of $29.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The business's 50 day moving average is $27.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.08, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.80.

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

Associated Banc announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, January 27th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 2.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.66%.

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.

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