Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB Stock Position Decreased by Sapient Capital LLC

Key Points

• Sapient Capital LLC reduced its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 9.7% in the second quarter, leaving it with 268,796 shares valued at approximately $11.16 million.
• Fifth Third Bancorp announced a stock buyback program allowing for the repurchase of 100 million shares, signaling confidence in the company's valuation.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, increasing from the previous dividend of $0.37, with an ex-dividend date of September 30th.

Sapient Capital LLC cut its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 9.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 268,796 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 28,893 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC's holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $11,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.5% in the second quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 174,068 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,159,000 after buying an additional 7,480 shares in the last quarter. Balefire LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $212,000. Central Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $289,000. Czech National Bank increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 163,158 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,711,000 after purchasing an additional 9,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 96,625 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,974,000 after purchasing an additional 1,333 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Down 0.4%

Fifth Third Bancorp stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $46.08. 8,455,666 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,085,903. 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 $30.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 0.93. 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 company has a 50 day moving average price of $43.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.19.

Fifth Third Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, June 16th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This is an increase from Fifth Third Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Fifth Third Bancorp's payout ratio is presently 45.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FITB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. DA Davidson raised shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.13.

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.