Longbow Finance SA Makes New Investment in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Key Points

• Longbow Finance SA made a new investment in Fifth Third Bancorp, acquiring 94,362 shares valued at approximately $3,699,000.
• Fifth Third Bancorp's board authorized a share buyback plan to repurchase up to 100 million shares, signaling potential confidence in the stock's valuation.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, with a current annualized dividend yield of 3.47%.

Longbow Finance SA bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 94,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,699,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of FITB. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $268,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $711,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 775,359 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,782,000 after buying an additional 49,798 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 519,339 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,958,000 after buying an additional 73,245 shares during the period. Finally, TIAA Trust National Association lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 7,974 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $337,000 after buying an additional 361 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FITB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $47.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of FITB stock opened at $42.69 on Friday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $32.25 and a 52-week high of $49.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.11. The company has a market capitalization of $28.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.26, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.96%.

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.

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