New York State Teachers Retirement System Decreases Holdings in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB)

New York State Teachers Retirement System decreased its position in shares of Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 5.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 267,049 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 15,274 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $5,712,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ASB. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Associated Banc during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in Associated Banc by 319.6% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,140 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,630 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new position in Associated Banc during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new position in Associated Banc during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Associated Banc during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.98% of the company’s stock.

Associated Banc Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:ASB opened at $20.31 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $20.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.51. Associated Banc-Corp has a 1-year low of $14.47 and a 1-year high of $22.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The bank reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.01. Associated Banc had a net margin of 8.12% and a return on equity of 8.90%. The firm had revenue of $322.22 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $325.89 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.13 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.33%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $21.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Associated Banc from $21.50 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Associated Banc from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.02, for a total transaction of $105,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 50,126 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,053,648.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Associated Banc news, EVP John A. Utz sold 14,010 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.20, for a total transaction of $297,012.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 89,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,905,456. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Eileen A. Kamerick sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.02, for a total transaction of $105,100.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 50,126 shares in the company, valued at $1,053,648.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 21,710 shares of company stock valued at $454,897. Corporate insiders own 1.45% of the company’s stock.

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.