MQS Management LLC Makes New Investment in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 11,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $440,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. HWG Holdings LP acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 161.8% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 487 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 60.7% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

FITB has been the subject of several recent research reports. DA Davidson upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Barclays dropped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Cowen started coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $47.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.53.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 0.7%

FITB opened at $43.76 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $29.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.89, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company’s 50 day moving average is $39.61 and its 200-day moving average is $40.05. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1-year low of $32.25 and a 1-year high of $49.07.

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

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 46.98%.

Fifth Third Bancorp declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, June 16th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are 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.