Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Stock

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) had its price objective lifted by equities researchers at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $45.00 to $51.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price would indicate a potential upside of 8.40% from the company’s current price.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.81.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock traded down $0.52 on Wednesday, hitting $47.05. 2,905,612 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,556,624. Fifth Third Bancorp has a one year low of $30.01 and a one year high of $49.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $44.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.19.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 16.58% and a return on equity of 14.58%. The business’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $2,441,720.71. The trade was a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 8.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,476,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $242,713,000 after purchasing an additional 409,292 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 24,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 2,265 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $191,000. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the third quarter valued at $263,000. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 76.2% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 1,330,649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,005,000 after purchasing an additional 575,449 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.