Swiss National Bank Lowers Position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 294,340 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $6,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 291.3% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,563,274 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,063,000 after acquiring an additional 1,163,807 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Associated Banc by 12.0% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,149,355 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $24,309,000 after purchasing an additional 123,271 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 6.2% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 592,472 shares of the bank’s stock worth $12,762,000 after purchasing an additional 34,824 shares in the last quarter. Interval Partners LP boosted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 27.6% during the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 442,947 shares of the bank’s stock worth $9,368,000 after buying an additional 95,928 shares during the period. Finally, M&G PLC grew its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 2.9% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 423,903 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,326,000 after buying an additional 12,142 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of Associated Banc stock opened at $27.03 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.91. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $23.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Associated Banc-Corp has a 52 week low of $17.30 and a 52 week high of $28.18.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The bank reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $607.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $336.52 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 8.15% and a return on equity of 8.18%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.23 dividend. This is an increase from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Associated Banc from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.89.

Insider Transactions at Associated Banc

In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.78, for a total transaction of $45,560.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,637 shares in the company, valued at $2,269,730.86. The trade was a 1.97 % 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 Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total transaction of $165,089.28. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 54,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,108,254.72. The trade was a 12.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,641 shares of company stock worth $1,481,496 over the last 90 days. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.