Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Holdings Raised by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 57.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,362 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 15,400 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Associated Banc were worth $954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,662,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth about $36,144,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,066,871 shares of the bank's stock valued at $431,798,000 after purchasing an additional 1,444,068 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Associated Banc by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,838,422 shares of the bank's stock valued at $354,638,000 after purchasing an additional 1,272,441 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Associated Banc by 263.7% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,597,950 shares of the bank's stock worth $38,191,000 after purchasing an additional 1,158,576 shares during the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of Associated Banc stock traded up $0.23 on Thursday, reaching $22.86. 1,093,126 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,545,610. The firm has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.79. Associated Banc-Corp has a 1-year low of $18.32 and a 1-year high of $28.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. The company's 50-day moving average is $22.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.46.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $348.97 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $347.86 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.47% and a net margin of 6.02%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.03%. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.98%.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other Associated Banc news, CEO Andrew J. Harmening acquired 12,910 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.25 per share, for a total transaction of $300,157.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 319,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. This represents a 4.21% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ASB. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Associated Banc from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $27.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Stephens decreased their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $27.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Associated Banc Profile

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.