Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Lowers Position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC cut its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 0.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,505,621 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 34,862 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $292,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FITB. Advisor OS LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $212,000. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 265,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,225,000 after acquiring an additional 4,400 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,416,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 79,384 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,356,000 after acquiring an additional 7,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verus Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $515,000 after acquiring an additional 1,324 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on FITB shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 24th. TD Cowen started coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $52.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Cowen initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $47.53.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $41.51 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $27.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.16. Fifth Third Bancorp has a one year low of $32.25 and a one year high of $49.07.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 17.65%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.70 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.98%.

Fifth Third Bancorp declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, June 16th that authorizes the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.