Brokerages Set Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Price Target at $35.63

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.63.

FITB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $34.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

FITB stock opened at $34.22 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $35.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $22.46 and a 1 year high of $37.41.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.22. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 18.58% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.04 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.19 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.34%.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total transaction of $971,490.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,072,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total transaction of $971,490.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of FITB. Applied Capital LLC FL boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.9% during the first quarter. Applied Capital LLC FL now owns 41,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,528,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $278,000. Diversified Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 9,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $274,000. Finally, MPS Loria Financial Planners LLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter worth approximately $214,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.