Empowered Funds LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) by 1,079.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 125,799 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 115,136 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $5,389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 10.2% during the 1st quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,693 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $508,000. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department lifted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 17,472 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $650,000 after acquiring an additional 1,547 shares in the last quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 142,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,309,000 after acquiring an additional 1,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 35.6% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 60,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,247,000 after acquiring an additional 15,838 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Fifth Third Bancorp stock traded down $0.17 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $46.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,703,464 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,600,495. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $26.89 and a 12-month high of $48.10. The company has a market capitalization of $31.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.61, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.21. 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 fifty day moving average price is $43.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.41.

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

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. This is an increase from Fifth Third Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. Fifth Third Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on FITB shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $38.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com cut shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Argus lifted their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $43.09.

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.