Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Buys New Position in Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 28,258 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,341,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FITB. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 64,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,015,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Wealthquest Corp increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wealthquest Corp now owns 11,068 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ FITB opened at $47.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $36.64 and a 52-week high of $55.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $47.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.71. The stock has a market cap of $42.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.94.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.87. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 12.39%. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 53.69%.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total value of $1,009,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 189,382 shares in the company, valued at $9,556,215.72. The trade was a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.77, for a total transaction of $304,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 76,299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,873,700.23. The trade was a 7.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on FITB shares. Janney Montgomery Scott upped their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $51.00 to $56.25 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $67.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Evercore upped their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $51.00 to $53.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $53.00 to $54.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.19.

Fifth Third Bancorp Profile

Fifth Third Bancorp is a Cincinnati, Ohio–based bank holding company whose primary banking subsidiary operates as Fifth Third Bank. The company provides a broad range of financial services to individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its business mix includes retail and commercial banking, lending, payment and card services, treasury and cash management, and wealth management and investment advisory services delivered through a combination of branch locations, commercial offices and digital platforms.

On the consumer side, Fifth Third offers deposit accounts, consumer loans, mortgages, auto financing and credit card products, along with digital banking and mobile services.