Wolverine Asset Management LLC Buys 13,055 Shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 13,055.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,155 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,055 shares during the period. Wolverine Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc in the 3rd quarter worth $82,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Associated Banc in the 4th quarter worth $84,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc during the fourth quarter worth about $92,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new position in Associated Banc during the third quarter worth about $95,000. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on ASB. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Associated Banc from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Associated Banc from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a report on Friday. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Associated Banc from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.13.

Associated Banc Price Performance

NYSE:ASB opened at $21.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.78. The company has a market cap of $3.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.00. Associated Banc-Corp has a 52-week low of $14.47 and a 52-week high of $22.16.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $322.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.00 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 6.86%. Associated Banc’s quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Associated Banc Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In related news, EVP John A. Utz sold 14,010 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.20, for a total value of $297,012.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 89,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,905,456. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Associated Banc news, Director John B. Williams sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $52,785.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 62,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,229,225.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 14,010 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.20, for a total value of $297,012.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 89,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,905,456. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 21,710 shares of company stock valued at $454,897. 1.45% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.