American Century Companies Inc. Sells 347,569 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp $FITB

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 44.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 427,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 347,569 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 0.06% of Fifth Third Bancorp worth $16,769,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 76.2% in the first quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 512,298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,082,000 after purchasing an additional 221,608 shares in the last quarter. Aberdeen Group plc raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 106.2% in the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 533,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $20,652,000 after purchasing an additional 274,684 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 510.7% in the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 269,989 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,584,000 after purchasing an additional 225,781 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 7.2% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,139,830 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,681,000 after purchasing an additional 77,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 11.5% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 493,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,342,000 after purchasing an additional 50,702 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. DA Davidson upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $42.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Cowen assumed coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 10th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “buy” rating and a $47.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $52.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.80.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Fifth Third Bancorp stock opened at $44.79 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $42.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.91. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $32.25 and a 52-week high of $49.07.

Fifth Third Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, June 16th that allows the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.96%.

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.