The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Trims Stock Position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its position in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 173,456 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,512 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.12% of Associated Banc worth $3,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Steph & Co. lifted its position in Associated Banc by 470.2% during the first quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 1,169 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 964 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in Associated Banc by 285.2% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,225 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 907 shares during the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Associated Banc during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Associated Banc during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Associated Banc during the first quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on ASB shares. Baird R W lowered shares of Associated Banc from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Associated Banc

In other Associated Banc news, Director Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total transaction of $165,089.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 54,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,108,254.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Lith Karen Van sold 8,061 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.48, for a total value of $165,089.28. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 54,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,108,254.72. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.78, for a total transaction of $45,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,637 shares in the company, valued at $2,269,730.86. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 33,835 shares of company stock valued at $757,214. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Associated Banc Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ASB opened at $21.21 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Associated Banc-Corp has a 52 week low of $15.16 and a 52 week high of $24.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $21.46 and its 200 day moving average is $21.35. The company has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.93.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52. The business had revenue of $321.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $330.69 million. Associated Banc had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 8.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Associated Banc’s payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

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.