Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Acquires 2,126,978 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 131.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,746,926 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,126,978 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp makes up 0.7% of Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $175,394,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FITB. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $649,264,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 16.7% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 16,037,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $714,457,000 after acquiring an additional 2,293,939 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 130.6% during the fourth quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 3,367,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,541,000 after acquiring an additional 1,907,400 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 6.2% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 30,830,308 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,373,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,803,861 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smead Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 99.9% during the fourth quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,250,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $152,139,000 after acquiring an additional 1,624,138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Truist Financial set a $57.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Fifth Third Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kevin J. Khanna sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.77, for a total transaction of $304,620.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 76,299 shares in the company, valued at $3,873,700.23. This represents a 7.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Peter L. Sefzik sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.46, for a total transaction of $1,009,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 189,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,556,215.72. This trade represents a 9.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Up 4.7%

Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $51.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $46.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $48.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $48.45. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12 month low of $37.86 and a 12 month high of $55.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.91 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 15.89%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 4.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 53.69%.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp is a Cincinnati, Ohio–based bank holding company whose primary banking subsidiary operates as Fifth Third Bank. The company provides a broad range of financial services to individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. Its business mix includes retail and commercial banking, lending, payment and card services, treasury and cash management, and wealth management and investment advisory services delivered through a combination of branch locations, commercial offices and digital platforms.

On the consumer side, Fifth Third offers deposit accounts, consumer loans, mortgages, auto financing and credit card products, along with digital banking and mobile services.