DA Davidson Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Stock

Key Points

• DA Davidson raised its price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $63 to $65 and reiterated a buy rating, implying about 12.5% upside from the current price.
• Other analysts remain mostly constructive, with multiple firms maintaining or raising bullish targets; the stock carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $59.96.
• Fifth Third recently reported mixed quarterly results, with earnings per share of $0.83 just below estimates but revenue of $3.26 billion slightly above expectations; the stock was trading around $57.76, near its 52-week high of $59.50.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by research analysts at DA Davidson from $63.00 to $65.00 in a research note issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a "buy" rating on the financial services provider's stock. DA Davidson's target price would indicate a potential upside of 12.54% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on FITB. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Stephens assumed coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, June 15th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $58.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $58.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $59.96.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 0.4%

Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $57.76 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $53.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.63. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $40.04 and a 12-month high of $59.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.35 billion, a PE ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.01). Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 12.39%. The business had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $1,009,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 189,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,556,215.72. This trade represents a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 7.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,864 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 916 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 40.5% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 56,592 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,218,000 after buying an additional 16,323 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 45.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 759 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 5.0% in the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 10,252 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $422,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $968,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Company Profile

Fifth Third Bancorp is a Cincinnati, Ohio–based bank holding company whose primary banking subsidiary operates as Fifth Third Bank. The company provides a broad range of financial services to individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its business mix includes retail and commercial banking, lending, payment and card services, treasury and cash management, and wealth management and investment advisory services delivered through a combination of branch locations, commercial offices and digital platforms.

On the consumer side, Fifth Third offers deposit accounts, consumer loans, mortgages, auto financing and credit card products, along with digital banking and mobile services.

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