Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Acquires 13,849 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 42.0%, owning 46,837 shares worth $1.84 million at the end of the last quarter.
• Fifth Third Bancorp recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.5%.
• The company announced a share buyback program allowing the repurchase of 100 million outstanding shares, indicating confidence from the board in the stock's valuation.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 42.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,837 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,849 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $1,836,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 6.1% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,908,401 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $898,009,000 after acquiring an additional 1,321,554 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 5.1% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,736,353 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $695,265,000 after acquiring an additional 862,374 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter valued at $334,805,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,074,520 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $299,111,000 after acquiring an additional 798,663 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,229,103 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $178,806,000 after acquiring an additional 564,860 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Up 4.5%

Shares of NASDAQ FITB traded up $1.91 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,092,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,496,568. 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 stock has a market cap of $29.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.91. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12 month low of $32.25 and a 12 month high of $49.07. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.85.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.96%.

Fifth Third Bancorp announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on FITB shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $47.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Cowen began coverage on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. 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's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $47.80.

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.