Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Sets New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $54.50 to $61.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp traded as high as $58.45 and last traded at $58.3750, with a volume of 12696 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.89.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Stephens started coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, June 15th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $58.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wolfe Research cut their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 20th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $1,009,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 189,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,556,215.72. This trade represents a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.77, for a total value of $304,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 76,299 shares in the company, valued at $3,873,700.23. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of FITB. Center for Financial Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $25,000. SouthState Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 74.7% in the 1st quarter. SouthState Bank Corp now owns 552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 501.9% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Monetary Solutions Ltd acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $49.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.85 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.90.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.20. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 15.89%.The business had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.71 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 53.69%.

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.