Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Monday after Citigroup raised their price target on the stock from $43.00 to $52.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp traded as high as $48.50 and last traded at $48.50, with a volume of 1770 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.90.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on FITB. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Baird R W lowered Fifth Third Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.62.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $327,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,441,720.71. The trade was a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. Park National Corp OH increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 15.0% during the 2nd quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 41,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 5,411 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 15.1% during the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 71,858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,078,000 after acquiring an additional 9,444 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the second quarter worth approximately $1,254,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $639,000. Finally, BDF Gestion purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,837,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $32.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.09, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average is $44.29 and its 200 day moving average is $40.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 16.58%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.17%.

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.