Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to “Overweight”

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was upgraded by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $39.50 target price on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $37.50. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price points to a potential upside of 8.34% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently commented on FITB. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $41.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $40.00 price target (up from $39.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $36.50.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

FITB opened at $36.46 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $35.65 and its 200 day moving average is $32.50. 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 company has a market cap of $24.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.27. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $22.46 and a 12-month high of $37.41.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.70% and a return on equity of 16.11%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.2 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 139,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp 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 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 dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,072,172.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 46,357 shares of company stock worth $1,693,888 in the last 90 days. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 8,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Lcnb Corp lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 19,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $658,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 41,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,558,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 21.1% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,038 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 73,905 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,750,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

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.