Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Reduces Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. lowered its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 5.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 108,794 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,013 shares during the quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $4,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. American Capital Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the second quarter worth $34,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 125.0% in the first quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 130.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $100,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 134,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,376,880. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 20,000 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total value of $835,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 125,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,224,883.99. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $100,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 134,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,376,880. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 54,500 shares of company stock worth $2,269,920 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on FITB shares. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $41.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.78.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FITB traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $42.10. 3,368,861 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,620,026. Fifth Third Bancorp has a twelve month low of $22.49 and a twelve month high of $43.85. The firm has a market cap of $28.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.37, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.22. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $41.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

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

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This is a positive change from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.98%.

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.