Vident Advisory LLC Purchases 35,196 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Key Points

• Vident Advisory LLC significantly increased its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 169.1% in Q1, acquiring an additional 35,196 shares for a total of $2.2 million worth of stock.
• Fifth Third Bancorp's board has authorized a share buyback program for up to 100 million shares, indicating confidence in the stock's value.
• Wells Fargo raised its price target for Fifth Third Bancorp shares from $48.00 to $52.00, reflecting an overall positive outlook from multiple analysts on the stock's performance.

Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 169.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 56,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 35,196 shares during the quarter. Vident Advisory LLC's holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $2,196,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kodai Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,709,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 61.7% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 488,902 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,165,000 after purchasing an additional 186,545 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 19.9% in the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 71,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,792,000 after purchasing an additional 11,811 shares during the last quarter. Carlson Capital L.P. lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 64.1% in the 1st quarter. Carlson Capital L.P. now owns 19,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $753,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 8,578 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,763 shares during the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Cowen initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. DA Davidson upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $47.00 price target for the company. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $47.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of FITB stock traded down $0.64 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $45.62. 4,223,595 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,301,431. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $32.25 and a fifty-two week high of $49.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $43.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Fifth Third Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 45.96%.

Fifth Third Bancorp announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, June 16th that permits the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.