Crescent Grove Advisors LLC Boosts Position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Crescent Grove Advisors LLC raised its stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB - Free Report) by 15.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 101,591 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 13,521 shares during the period. Crescent Grove Advisors LLC owned about 0.07% of Associated Banc worth $2,428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Associated Banc in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Associated Banc during the 4th quarter worth approximately $64,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 82.1% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,190 shares of the bank's stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 1,438 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,704 shares of the bank's stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in Associated Banc by 21.0% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 8,574 shares of the bank's stock valued at $185,000 after buying an additional 1,490 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company's stock.

Associated Banc Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE:ASB traded down $0.25 on Friday, reaching $25.09. The stock had a trading volume of 2,530,010 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,248,753. Associated Banc-Corp has a 12-month low of $19.40 and a 12-month high of $28.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.22 and a 200 day moving average of $23.42.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB - Get Free Report) last posted 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 8.15% and a return on equity of 8.18%. On average, research analysts predict that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This is an increase from Associated Banc's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Associated Banc's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Associated Banc from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Friday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Associated Banc currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $26.67.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other news, EVP John A. Utz sold 19,044 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.19, for a total value of $460,674.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 100,204 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,423,934.76. The trade was a 15.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP David L. Stein sold 29,536 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.43, for a total value of $810,172.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,222,406.03. This trade represents a 26.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.