Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.63.

FITB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $29.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Barclays increased their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $34.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 1st.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

FITB stock opened at $34.22 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.31 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $35.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.70. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $22.46 and a fifty-two week high of $37.41.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.15 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 18.58%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.04 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.19 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.09%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 43.34%.

Insider Transactions at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $181,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,072,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $181,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FITB. Fairfield Bush & CO. lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 36,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC lifted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 22.0% during the 1st quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 255,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,008,000 after buying an additional 46,064 shares during the last quarter. Prudential PLC bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $754,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 54,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,365,000 after buying an additional 6,341 shares during the period. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. grew its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 60.8% in the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 121,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,224,000 after buying an additional 45,910 shares during the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp operates as the bank holding company for Fifth Third Bank, National Association that engages in the provision of a range of financial products and services in the United States. It operates through three segments: Commercial Banking, Consumer and Small Business Banking, and Wealth and Asset Management.