Hennessy Advisors Inc. Trims Stock Position in Associated Banc-Corp $ASB

Hennessy Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 70,000 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 35,000 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Associated Banc were worth $1,800,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its stake in Associated Banc by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 154,933 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $3,779,000 after buying an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 0.6% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 80,262 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,958,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Associated Banc by 2.0% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 27,354 shares of the bank’s stock worth $667,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Associated Banc by 17.9% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,688 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 6.2% during the second quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 12,103 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 704 shares during the last quarter. 82.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Associated Banc

In other Associated Banc news, EVP Patrick Edward Ahern sold 30,489 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.70, for a total transaction of $783,567.30. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 24,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $618,213.50. The trade was a 55.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John A. Utz sold 2,135 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.41, for a total transaction of $56,385.35. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 109,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,900,927.22. This represents a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 35,951 shares of company stock worth $925,756 in the last 90 days. 1.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Associated Banc Trading Up 0.0%

ASB stock opened at $25.77 on Friday. Associated Banc-Corp has a 52 week low of $18.32 and a 52 week high of $27.58. The company has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.41, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.56.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $390.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $377.94 million. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 7.23%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.56 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Associated Banc’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 1st. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is currently 102.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on ASB shares. Wall Street Zen cut Associated Banc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Truist Financial increased their price target on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Associated Banc from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 target price on shares of Associated Banc in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target (up from $29.00) on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Associated Banc has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.40.

Associated Banc Profile

Associated Banc-Corp, through its primary subsidiary Associated Bank, N.A., is a regional financial services company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The bank operates more than 200 branches across the Midwest, offering community-focused banking solutions for individuals, small businesses and commercial clients. Its emphasis on personalized service and regional decision-making supports long-standing customer relationships.

On the consumer side, Associated Bank provides checking and savings accounts, residential mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto financing and credit card products.