Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stock Position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC trimmed its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,549 shares during the quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $780,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 21.1% in the fourth quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Vicus Capital grew its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Vicus Capital now owns 9,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 24.3% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 2,083 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Resource Group lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 116,918 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,033,000 after acquiring an additional 435 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $540,497.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,696,981.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $540,497.66. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 46,646 shares in the company, valued at $1,696,981.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 46,357 shares of company stock worth $1,693,888. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FITB opened at $36.55 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $24.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.60, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.27. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $22.46 and a 1 year high of $37.41. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.26 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.70% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The company had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 44.44%.

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.