Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 29.5% in the first quarter, adding 433,273 shares and bringing its total holding to 1.9 million shares worth about $88.5 million.
• Fifth Third Bancorp reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $0.83 per share versus analysts’ expectations of $0.63, while revenue came in slightly below estimates at $2.83 billion.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, which annualizes to $1.60 and yields 2.8%; meanwhile, analysts maintain a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average price target of $59.11.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 29.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,903,839 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 433,273 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.21% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $88,452,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 7.1% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,864 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $543,000 after buying an additional 916 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in shares of 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 worth $2,218,000 after acquiring an additional 16,323 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 45.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,428 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $100,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 484 shares during the period. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the second quarter valued at $968,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Up 1.0%

NASDAQ:FITB traded up $0.58 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $57.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,443,803 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,539,302. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $40.04 and a 52-week high of $58.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $52.24 and a 200-day moving average of $50.27.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.91 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 15.89%.During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.71 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 53.69%.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 189,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,556,215.72. This trade represents a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.77, for a total transaction of $304,620.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 76,299 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,873,700.23. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore set a $60.00 price target on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. DA Davidson restated a "buy" rating and set a $58.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.11.

Fifth Third Bancorp 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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