International Assets Investment Management LLC Increases Stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 48.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 350,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 113,838 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $12,102,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 145.5% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Clear Street Markets LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 93.4% during the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 1,340 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,000.0% during the 4th quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ:FITB traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $34.53. 3,340,002 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,070,304. The company has a market cap of $23.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $22.46 and a 1 year high of $37.41. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $35.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.49.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $3.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 18.58% and a return on equity of 16.25%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp's payout ratio is currently 43.34%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on FITB. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $39.00 price target (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 18th. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $41.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $35.63.

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.