Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, May 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $37.50 to $39.50 in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.15.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ FITB traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $38.48. 3,626,253 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,851,100. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1 year low of $22.49 and a 1 year high of $39.14. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $36.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.24.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.70% and a return on equity of 16.11%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.50, for a total transaction of $93,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 136,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,134,575. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kala Gibson sold 14,857 shares of the 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 in the company, valued at $1,696,981.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.50, for a total value of $93,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 136,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,134,575. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of FITB. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter worth $29,000. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,000.0% during the fourth quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Centerpoint Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 125.0% during the first quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 750 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

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.