Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Shares Sold by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV decreased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 10.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,004,113 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 236,972 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.30% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $78,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $371,836,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $53,508,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 4,271.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,203,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,172,000 after buying an additional 1,175,834 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in 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 valued at $402,991,000 after purchasing an additional 1,027,044 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,971,000. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock traded up $0.25 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $41.39. The stock had a trading volume of 1,397,796 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,881,859. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock's 50 day moving average is $38.09 and its 200 day moving average is $40.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.62 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.90. Fifth Third Bancorp has a twelve month low of $32.25 and a twelve month high of $49.07.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.03. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.98%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on FITB. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.53.

Fifth Third Bancorp 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.