Norges Bank Acquires New Stake in Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 8,690,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $357,440,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.31% of Fifth Third Bancorp as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,043.3% during the 2nd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 246.3% during the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 532 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department grew its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 53.0% in the second quarter. BankPlus Trust Department now owns 837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In other news, Director Evan Bayh bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $41.22 per share, for a total transaction of $123,660.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 84,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,501,309.24. This trade represents a 3.66% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup lifted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Stephens set a $52.00 target price on Fifth Third Bancorp and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Wolfe Research increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.35.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $43.44 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Fifth Third Bancorp has a one year low of $32.25 and a one year high of $48.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.98.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.06. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 18.67% and a return on equity of 13.41%. The firm had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 30th. This is a positive change from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.76%.

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.