12,964 Shares in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Acquired by Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc.

Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 12,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $447,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.4% in the first quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 36,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,570,000 after buying an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC boosted its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 22.0% in the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 255,764 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,008,000 after buying an additional 46,064 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC acquired a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the first quarter worth $754,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 13.0% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 54,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,365,000 after purchasing an additional 6,341 shares during the period. Finally, Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 60.8% during the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 121,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,224,000 after purchasing an additional 45,910 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.63.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Up 5.9 %

FITB traded up $2.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $36.25. The company had a trading volume of 13,812,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,509,247. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52 week low of $22.46 and a 52 week high of $37.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $24.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.22, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $35.21 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.78.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 18.58% and a return on equity of 16.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.34%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total transaction of $971,490.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 139,422 shares in the company, valued at $5,072,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of Fifth Third Bancorp stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total value of $971,490.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares in the company, valued at $8,407,751.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.