Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $34.22, but opened at $36.42. Fifth Third Bancorp shares last traded at $35.35, with a volume of 1,705,916 shares traded.

The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 18.58%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 EPS.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.34%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $29.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Barclays increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $34.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.63.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 737,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,551,000 after purchasing an additional 269,152 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 661,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,805,000 after purchasing an additional 69,273 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 48.0% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 350,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,102,000 after acquiring an additional 113,838 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,860,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $376,413,000 after acquiring an additional 393,937 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 671,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,017,000 after acquiring an additional 27,610 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $35.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.41 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Fifth Third Bancorp Company 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.