Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 37,116 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Franklin Resources Inc. trimmed its holdings in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 25.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,405 shares of the bank's stock after selling 37,116 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.07% of Associated Banc worth $2,567,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ASB. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 49.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,747 shares of the bank's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Associated Banc in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc during the fourth quarter worth $64,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Associated Banc during the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Associated Banc by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,704 shares of the bank's stock valued at $112,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ASB. 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 report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com lowered Associated Banc from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $26.67.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.71, for a total transaction of $172,970.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,495 shares in the company, valued at $1,223,021.45. This represents a 12.39 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,830 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total transaction of $71,004.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now 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. Insiders own 1.45% of the company's stock.

Associated Banc Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASB traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $19.82. 1,082,291 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,493,392. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $22.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.88. Associated Banc-Corp has a 12 month low of $18.32 and a 12 month high of $28.18. The firm has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.78.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 earnings per share 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, equities analysts anticipate that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio is currently 116.46%.

About Associated Banc

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.