Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Purchases New Shares in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,296,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $44,708,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.19% of Fifth Third Bancorp at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 145.5% in the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 560 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. grew its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

FITB stock traded up $0.67 on Friday, reaching $37.56. 4,006,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,321,443. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12 month low of $22.46 and a 12 month high of $37.77. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $35.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.58 billion, a PE ratio of 11.92, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.24.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.70% and a return on equity of 16.11%. The business had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 44.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on FITB shares. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $39.00 price objective (down previously from $42.00) on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Monday, April 1st. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $41.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $37.50 to $39.50 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $540,497.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 46,646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,696,981.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total value of $540,497.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 46,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,696,981.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, 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 $5,072,172.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,857 shares of company stock worth $1,787,638 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp 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.