Squarepoint Ops LLC Buys 16,700 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its stake in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 116,712 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 16,700 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Associated Banc worth $2,789,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hancock Whitney Corp boosted its stake in Associated Banc by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 58,001 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,386,000 after purchasing an additional 401 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,518 shares of the bank's stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Associated Banc by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 80,294 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,919,000 after acquiring an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in Associated Banc by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 17,882 shares of the bank's stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 3,592 shares of the bank's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ASB. Stephens cut their price objective on Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Truist Financial began coverage on Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "hold" rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Associated Banc from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and cut their target price for the company from $27.00 to $26.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.00.

Associated Banc Trading Down 0.4%

ASB stock traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $23.19. 1,035,980 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,545,906. Associated Banc-Corp has a one year low of $18.32 and a one year high of $28.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of 29.35, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.88. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $21.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.73.

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

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.97%. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.98%.

Insider Transactions at Associated Banc

In other news, CEO Andrew J. Harmening bought 12,910 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $300,157.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 319,269 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,423,004.25. This trade represents a 4.21% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.71, for a total value of $172,970.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 49,495 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,223,021.45. The trade was a 12.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Associated Banc Company 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.