Weiss Asset Management LP Makes New $1.34 Million Investment in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 31,214 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,337,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CWM LLC grew its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.7% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 25,755 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $940,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 51.1% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 140,357 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,122,000 after buying an additional 47,473 shares during the period. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 8.8% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 130,351 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,757,000 after acquiring an additional 10,490 shares in the last quarter. Park National Corp OH lifted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 15.0% in the second quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 41,503 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,514,000 after acquiring an additional 5,411 shares during the period. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 110.9% during the 2nd quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 15,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $567,000 after acquiring an additional 8,169 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FITB traded down $0.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $46.53. The stock had a trading volume of 3,899,127 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,537,911. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12-month low of $30.47 and a 12-month high of $49.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $45.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.45.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 16.58%. Fifth Third Bancorp's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm 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 3.18%. This is a positive change 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 is presently 49.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total value of $327,525.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,441,720.71. This represents a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FITB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $45.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.81.

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.