Cedrus LLC Sells 4,448 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Cedrus LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 44.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,448 shares during the period. Cedrus LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $243,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Park National Corp OH increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 15.0% during the 2nd quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 41,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,514,000 after buying an additional 5,411 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $1,254,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $639,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 9.1% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 313,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,657,000 after purchasing an additional 26,194 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 827,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,796,000 after purchasing an additional 18,208 shares during the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total transaction of $835,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,224,883.99. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Mitchell Stuart Feiger sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.21, for a total value of $494,520.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 20,961 shares in the company, valued at $863,802.81. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total value of $835,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,224,883.99. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,169,920 over the last quarter. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FITB opened at $44.67 on Monday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $22.49 and a 12-month high of $45.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $42.15 and a 200 day moving average of $39.12.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.05). Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.41% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.92 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.31%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on FITB shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Argus upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.78.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

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.