Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the fifteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $36.50.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $37.50 to $39.50 in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of FITB stock opened at $38.48 on Thursday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $22.49 and a 1 year high of $38.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $36.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.21 billion, a PE ratio of 12.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 17.70%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.50, for a total transaction of $93,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 136,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,134,575. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.50, for a total value of $93,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 136,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,134,575. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total transaction of $971,490.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 48,857 shares of company stock worth $1,787,638. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FITB. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 8,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $294,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Lcnb Corp grew its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 19,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $658,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 41,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its position in 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 valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 73,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,750,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Company Profile

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.