Clearbridge Investments LLC Has $21.36 Million Stock Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 30.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 619,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 143,348 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $21,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in FITB. Balentine LLC bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $203,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 291,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,043,000 after acquiring an additional 21,612 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at about $257,189,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 24,262 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $837,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 54,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,879,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Down 2.0 %

NASDAQ FITB opened at $36.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $34.03. Fifth Third Bancorp has a one year low of $22.49 and a one year high of $39.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market cap of $25.19 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.24.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 17.70%. The firm had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $40.00 price target (up from $39.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $37.50 to $39.50 in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. DA Davidson upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $181,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,072,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 48,857 shares of company stock valued at $1,787,638. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.