Cibc World Markets Corp Buys Shares of 15,130 Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 15,130 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $362,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ASB. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 221.6% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 163,003 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,511,000 after buying an additional 112,323 shares during the period. Commerce Bank increased its position in Associated Banc by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 24,795 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $534,000 after acquiring an additional 3,542 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 117.6% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 42,697 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $920,000 after acquiring an additional 23,076 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 0.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,137,125 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,034,000 after purchasing an additional 17,425 shares during the period. Finally, Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 6.4% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 296,155 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,379,000 after purchasing an additional 17,699 shares during the period. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays raised their target price on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One equities 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.11.

Associated Banc Stock Performance

Shares of ASB stock opened at $23.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.20 and a 200-day moving average of $23.99. The company has a market cap of $3.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Associated Banc-Corp has a 52 week low of $19.76 and a 52 week high of $28.18.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.96%. Associated Banc’s payout ratio is currently 116.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Associated Banc

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the director now owns 49,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,223,021.45. This trade represents a 12.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 66,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,678,897.35. This represents a 4.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.45% 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.