Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Acquires 579 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 49.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,747 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 579 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $42,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the fourth quarter valued at about $56,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the fourth quarter valued at about $64,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Associated Banc by 82.1% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 1,438 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

Associated Banc Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of ASB stock opened at $21.07 on Wednesday. Associated Banc-Corp has a 1-year low of $19.76 and a 1-year high of $28.18. The company has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.66, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.00.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.04. Associated Banc had a net margin of 5.15% and a return on equity of 8.24%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Associated Banc’s payout ratio is 116.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 49,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,223,021.45. This represents a 12.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,830 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total transaction of $71,004.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 66,915 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,678,897.35. This trade represents a 4.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ASB. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. StockNews.com cut shares of Associated Banc from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.11.

Associated Banc 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.