Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 3,865 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 150,092 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,865 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $5,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 32.1% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,076,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $331,188,000 after purchasing an additional 3,176,903 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $67,354,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 8.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,428,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $492,117,000 after buying an additional 1,500,653 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 66.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,307,073 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,437,000 after acquiring an additional 917,549 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kettle Hill Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $12,625,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares in the company, valued at $5,072,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $540,497.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,696,981.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 139,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,857 shares of company stock valued at $1,787,638. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FITB opened at $37.56 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $25.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1-year low of $22.46 and a 1-year high of $37.77.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 17.70%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 44.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FITB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $39.00 price target (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $36.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.50.

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.