Comerica Bank Has $5.52 Million Stock Position in Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Key Points

• Comerica Bank cut its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 55.9% in Q4, selling 149,368 shares and ending the period with 117,988 shares valued at about $5.52 million.
• Fifth Third posted an earnings beat (EPS $0.83 vs. consensus -$0.04) and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.40 (annualized $1.60, ~3.2% yield).
• Analysts are largely positive—Fifth Third has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $57.19; institutional investors hold roughly 83.8% of the stock while insiders have made recent small sales.

Comerica Bank lowered its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 55.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 117,988 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 149,368 shares during the period. Comerica Bank's holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $5,523,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AE Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.7% during the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 348,001 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $15,503,000 after buying an additional 15,627 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 18.0% during the third quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 161,369 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,189,000 after buying an additional 24,566 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.4% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,023,145 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $90,131,000 after buying an additional 48,080 shares during the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,314,000. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 26.6% during the third quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 1,619,948 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $72,169,000 after buying an additional 340,030 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:FITB opened at $50.46 on Friday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $36.48 and a 52-week high of $55.44. The stock has a market cap of $45.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.94. The business's 50 day moving average is $48.11 and its 200 day moving average is $47.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.87. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 15.89%.The company had revenue of $2.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.71 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 53.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FITB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $58.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $53.00 to $54.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 $9,556,215.72. This represents a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,873,700.23. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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