Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC Sells 4,873 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC reduced its position in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 25.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,263 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 4,873 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $341,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ASB. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted 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 worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 579 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Associated Banc in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc in the 4th quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Associated Banc during the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other Associated Banc news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.71, for a total value of $172,970.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,223,021.45. This trade represents a 12.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.09, for a total value of $71,004.70. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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. 1.45% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Associated Banc Stock Down 2.6 %

ASB stock opened at $18.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.96. Associated Banc-Corp has a twelve month low of $18.33 and a twelve month high of $28.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a PE ratio of 23.81, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.78. 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 (NYSE:ASB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The bank reported $0.57 EPS 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 predict that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $0.23 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.89%. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 116.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Associated Banc from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Associated Banc in a 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. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Associated Banc from $28.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $26.78.

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.