Greenwood Capital Associates LLC Makes New $981,000 Investment in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Greenwood Capital Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 22,901 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $981,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 9.9% during the third quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.6% during the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 10,098 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.5% during the second quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 51,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.9% during the third quarter. Lockerman Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $299,000 after buying an additional 264 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.0% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 14,050 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

FITB stock opened at $43.16 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50-day moving average is $42.85 and its 200-day moving average is $39.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $24.64 and a 1 year high of $45.71.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released 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). The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 16.58%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This is a boost from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 49.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FITB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Baird R W downgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Argus upped their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Bank of America upped their price target 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. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.28.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total value of $840,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 114,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total value of $327,525.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,441,720.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $840,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 114,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.