Insider Selling: Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) EVP Sells 5,000 Shares of Stock

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) 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 value of $181,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $36.74 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $34.69 and its 200-day moving average is $30.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.03 billion, a PE ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $22.46 and a 12-month high of $37.36.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.15 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 18.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on FITB. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $29.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Fifth Third Bancorp from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $37.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. Barclays boosted their price target 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. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $35.30.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.4% during the first quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 36,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after buying an additional 502 shares during the period. Aviva PLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 22.0% during the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 255,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,008,000 after buying an additional 46,064 shares during the period. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the first quarter valued at $754,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 13.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 54,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,365,000 after buying an additional 6,341 shares during the period. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 60.8% during the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 121,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,224,000 after buying an additional 45,910 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.