Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 87,063 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 8.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,060,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 87,063 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.16% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $44,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Down 2.4 %

FITB stock opened at $38.81 on Friday. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $33.82 and a fifty-two week high of $49.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $42.18 and a 200-day moving average of $43.51. The company has a market capitalization of $25.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 47.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on FITB shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, February 10th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $43.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO James C. Leonard sold 17,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.26, for a total value of $761,272.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 244,487 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,820,994.62. This trade represents a 6.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 21,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.55, for a total value of $945,035.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 130,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,698,778.80. The trade was a 14.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.