Legal & General Group Plc Sells 873,272 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 17.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,190,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 873,272 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.62% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $177,171,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FITB. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 281,983 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,935,000 after purchasing an additional 1,366 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 57,515 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,432,000 after purchasing an additional 14,550 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 114.9% during the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 23,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 12,384 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,809,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $76,498,000 after purchasing an additional 64,932 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sit Investment Associates Inc. raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 65.0% during the 4th quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 237,125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,026,000 after purchasing an additional 93,450 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO James C. Leonard sold 17,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.26, for a total value of $761,272.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 244,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,820,994.62. This represents a 6.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 21,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.55, for a total value of $945,035.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 130,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,698,778.80. The trade was a 14.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on FITB. Robert W. Baird raised Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $47.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $53.00 target price (down from $54.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $48.12.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Up 7.2 %

Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $35.82 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $23.93 billion, a PE ratio of 11.41, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $32.25 and a fifty-two week high of $49.07.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.13%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.13%.

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.