Southland Equity Partners LLC Increases Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Southland Equity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 380 shares during the quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 161.8% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FITB. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. 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 price objective for the company. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Baird R W raised Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.53.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 2.6%

FITB opened at $37.98 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $37.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $40.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.90. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12 month low of $32.25 and a 12 month high of $49.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.17 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.10% and a net margin of 17.43%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.90%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.98%.

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.