Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Cuts Stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lessened its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 4.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,153 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $835,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bailard Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% in the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 51,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 14,050 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $513,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.8% in the first quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 7,721 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $287,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.6% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 12,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, Lcnb Corp grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 19,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $658,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ FITB opened at $43.24 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $29.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $41.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.14. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $22.49 and a 52-week high of $43.85.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.85 by ($0.04). Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.41% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. This is a boost from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on FITB shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, June 11th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.16.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 134,422 shares in the company, valued at $5,376,880. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 134,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,376,880. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mitchell Stuart Feiger sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.21, for a total transaction of $494,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 20,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $863,802.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 54,500 shares of company stock valued at $2,269,920 in the last 90 days. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp 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.