Peregrine Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 192,350 Associated Banc-Corp $ASB

Peregrine Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 192,350 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $4,974,000. Peregrine Capital Management LLC owned about 0.12% of Associated Banc at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of ASB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Associated Banc by 24.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 984,537 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,312,000 after purchasing an additional 194,307 shares during the last quarter. Associated Banc Corp boosted its position in Associated Banc by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Associated Banc Corp now owns 2,631,339 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $67,783,000 after buying an additional 182,623 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Associated Banc by 679.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,223,694 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $57,171,000 after buying an additional 1,938,393 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Associated Banc by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,538,157 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $477,543,000 after buying an additional 545,185 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Associated Banc by 32.5% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,629,549 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $67,606,000 after buying an additional 645,676 shares during the period. 82.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Associated Banc from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Associated Banc from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Associated Banc from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Associated Banc in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Matthew R. Braeger sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.17, for a total transaction of $140,850.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 11,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $331,758.09. This trade represents a 29.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John B. Williams sold 4,000 shares of Associated Banc stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.18, for a total value of $112,720.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 67,420 shares in the company, valued at $1,899,895.60. This trade represents a 5.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 28,299 shares of company stock worth $801,760 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Associated Banc Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of Associated Banc stock opened at $31.16 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Associated Banc-Corp has a 12 month low of $23.63 and a 12 month high of $31.36. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.30. The stock has a market cap of $5.88 billion, a PE ratio of 10.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.77.

Associated Banc (NYSE:ASB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.01. Associated Banc had a return on equity of 10.46% and a net margin of 19.88%.The firm had revenue of $387.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $384.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Associated Banc-Corp will post 2.92 EPS for the current year.

Associated Banc Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Associated Banc’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

About Associated Banc

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.