PL Capital Advisors LLC Sells 12,000 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

PL Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 6.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 188,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp makes up approximately 2.2% of PL Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. PL Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $6,487,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 145.5% in the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,000.0% in the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

FITB opened at $36.90 on Friday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $22.46 and a 12-month high of $37.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.27. The company has a market capitalization of $25.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.27.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.05. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 17.70%. The company had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on FITB. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $41.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $34.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.31.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $540,497.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 46,646 shares in the company, valued at $1,696,981.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $540,497.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 46,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,696,981.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,357 shares of company stock worth $1,693,888. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Profile

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.