AlphaQuest LLC Acquires New Position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 8,500 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the third quarter worth about $39,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth about $56,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth about $67,000. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Associated Banc

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was 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. This trade represents a 12.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,830 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total value of $71,004.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 66,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,678,897.35. The trade was a 4.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Associated Banc from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Associated Banc has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.11.

Associated Banc Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $21.96 on Monday. Associated Banc-Corp has a one year low of $19.76 and a one year high of $28.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $24.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.79, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.04. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 8.24%. As a group, analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is 116.46%.

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.