Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) Stake Raised by Point72 Asset Management L.P.

Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 83.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 852,400 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 386,904 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. owned about 0.56% of Associated Banc worth $20,372,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Associated Banc by 154.3% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,073 shares of the bank's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its position in Associated Banc by 221.0% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,499 shares of the bank's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Associated Banc by 49.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the 4th quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Associated Banc during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $64,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ASB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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 report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Associated Banc from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $27.00 to $26.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $26.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Associated Banc

In other Associated Banc news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.71, for a total transaction of $172,970.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,495 shares in the company, valued at $1,223,021.45. This represents a 12.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Andrew J. Harmening purchased 12,910 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $300,157.50. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 319,269 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. This trade represents a 4.21% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of ASB stock traded down $0.87 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $23.12. 1,003,319 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,541,076. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 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's 50 day moving average is $21.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.02. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The business had revenue of $348.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $347.86 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.98%.

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.