Victory Capital Management Inc. Decreases Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 33.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 917,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 466,810 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.14% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $39,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 89.5% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 56.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,787.3% in the 3rd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,340 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,269 shares during the period. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ FITB opened at $46.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $43.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.29. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $26.89 and a 52-week high of $48.10. The company has a market cap of $31.51 billion, a PE ratio of 15.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.21.

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

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. This is an increase from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $327,525.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,441,720.71. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $840,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 114,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This trade represents a 14.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on FITB shares. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.09.

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.