Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group cut its Fifth Third Bancorp stake by 39.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 778,741 shares and ending with 1,191,642 shares valued at about $55.8 million.
• Fifth Third reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.83 per share, topping estimates of $0.63, though revenue came in slightly below expectations at $2.83 billion.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 3.0%, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $57.34.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. decreased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 39.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,191,642 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 778,741 shares during the quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $55,781,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of FITB. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 501.9% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 517 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 619.6% in the fourth quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 734 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 77.6% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 737 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.77, for a total value of $304,620.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 76,299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,873,700.23. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $1,009,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 189,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,556,215.72. This trade represents a 9.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

FITB stock opened at $53.52 on Wednesday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $37.88 and a 1 year high of $55.44. The company has a market cap of $48.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.96, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $50.08 and a 200 day moving average of $49.06. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.91 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 12.39%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 53.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FITB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $61.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $67.00 to $60.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.34.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding FITB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.