Man Group plc Makes New Investment in Associated Banc-Corp $ASB

Key Points

• Man Group plc acquired 688,497 shares of Associated Banc-Corp in the second quarter, worth approximately $21.2 million and representing about 0.36% of the bank. Institutional investors collectively own 82.98% of ASB.
• Analysts maintain a cautiously positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $32.00. Associated Banc recently exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $0.73 and revenue of $454.5 million.
• Associated Banc declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, equivalent to $0.96 annually and a 3.1% yield. Meanwhile, insiders sold 87,524 shares worth approximately $2.75 million over the past three months.

Man Group plc bought a new stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 688,497 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $21,185,000. Man Group plc owned about 0.36% of Associated Banc as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ASB. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Associated Banc by 0.3% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 154,933 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,779,000 after acquiring an additional 394 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Associated Banc by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 19,079 shares of the bank's stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 426 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Associated Banc by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 27,354 shares of the bank's stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Associated Banc by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 34,801 shares of the bank's stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the period. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System grew its position in Associated Banc by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 39,378 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,018,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $34.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial raised their target price on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Associated Banc from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $32.00.

Associated Banc Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of ASB stock opened at $30.88 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.91 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.52. Associated Banc-Corp has a fifty-two week low of $23.86 and a fifty-two week high of $32.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 10.64% and a net margin of 19.66%.The firm had revenue of $454.54 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $438.01 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Associated Banc's payout ratio is currently 33.57%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Randall J. Erickson sold 43,561 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.04, for a total transaction of $1,395,694.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 56,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,797,155.64. This trade represents a 43.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicole M. Kitowski sold 7,663 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.91, for a total transaction of $236,863.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 45,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,401,057.57. This trade represents a 14.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 87,524 shares of company stock worth $2,746,671. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Associated Banc Profile

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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