Cetera Investment Advisers Boosts Position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 35.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 259,205 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 67,961 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $10,161,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,959,001 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $715,219,000 after purchasing an additional 285,910 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 9,531,485 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $402,991,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027,044 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,520 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $299,111,000 after purchasing an additional 798,663 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,763,716 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $243,690,000 after purchasing an additional 287,342 shares during the period. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,485,567 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $189,650,000 after purchasing an additional 542,460 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on FITB. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $47.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $47.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $49.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of FITB traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $41.57. The stock had a trading volume of 4,665,413 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,946,425. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $32.25 and a 1 year high of $49.07. The firm has a market cap of $27.75 billion, a PE ratio of 12.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock's 50 day moving average is $40.76 and its 200 day moving average is $40.12.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.96%.

Fifth Third Bancorp declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, June 16th that authorizes the company to repurchase 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Fifth Third Bancorp Company 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.