Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $55.44 and last traded at $54.8490, with a volume of 1010693 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $54.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FITB shares. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup boosted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $49.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.58.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $49.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $45.40.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.53% and a net margin of 19.50%.The business had revenue of $3.82 billion during the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.20%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.50, for a total transaction of $109,125.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 129,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,265,763.50. This represents a 1.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the second quarter worth $26,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,043.3% in the 2nd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares during the period. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 501.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 517 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Community Bank grew its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 581.0% during the third quarter. United Community Bank now owns 681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp is a Cincinnati, Ohio–based bank holding company whose primary banking subsidiary operates as Fifth Third Bank. The company provides a broad range of financial services to individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its business mix includes retail and commercial banking, lending, payment and card services, treasury and cash management, and wealth management and investment advisory services delivered through a combination of branch locations, commercial offices and digital platforms.

On the consumer side, Fifth Third offers deposit accounts, consumer loans, mortgages, auto financing and credit card products, along with digital banking and mobile services.