Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Short Interest Update

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 19,390,000 shares, a drop of 20.6% from the March 15th total of 24,430,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,080,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FITB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $49.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Citigroup decreased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $47.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.12.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FITB opened at $34.15 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $22.82 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $39.16 and a 200-day moving average of $42.66. Fifth Third Bancorp has a one year low of $32.25 and a one year high of $49.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.03. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.10% and a net margin of 17.43%. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.33%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 46.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 244,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,820,994.62. This represents a 6.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 21,700 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.55, for a total transaction of $945,035.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 130,856 shares in the company, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at about $263,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the third quarter worth approximately $191,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 10.0% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 24,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 2,265 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 8.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,476,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $242,713,000 after purchasing an additional 409,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1ST Source Bank acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at $211,000. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

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.