StockNews.com Downgrades Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) to Sell

StockNews.com lowered shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on FITB. Baird R W cut shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.28.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Up 8.6 %

Shares of FITB stock opened at $46.87 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.89. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $24.64 and a 1 year high of $46.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $31.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.21.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.05). Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 16.58%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. This is a positive change from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 49.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $327,525.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,441,720.71. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $840,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 114,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $327,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 55,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,441,720.71. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 20,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $878,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 10,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $433,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 21,749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $932,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Finally, Bailard Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 51,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,885,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is currently 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.