Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on FITB. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Baird R W lowered Fifth Third Bancorp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America lifted their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $42.28.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ FITB opened at $43.16 on Wednesday. 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 business’s fifty day moving average is $42.85 and its 200 day moving average is $39.84. The company has a market capitalization of $29.21 billion, a PE ratio of 14.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.21. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $24.64 and a fifty-two week high of $45.71.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total value of $327,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,441,720.71. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,441,720.71. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total value of $840,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 114,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fifth Third Bancorp

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $774,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth $206,000. Verus Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 78.3% during the 3rd quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 10,862 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $465,000 after purchasing an additional 4,770 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,731,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,184,000 after buying an additional 19,572 shares during the period. Finally, First National Trust Co grew its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 44.9% during the 3rd quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 77,099 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,303,000 after buying an additional 23,890 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.