Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Shares Sold by Cozad Asset Management Inc.

Cozad Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,040 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Cozad Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $484,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 145.5% during the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 560 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FITB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $37.50 to $39.50 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Fifth Third Bancorp presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.50.

Fifth Third Bancorp Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of FITB stock opened at $37.10 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $35.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.53. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 1-year low of $22.46 and a 1-year high of $37.67. The firm has a market cap of $25.27 billion, a PE ratio of 11.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 17.70% and a return on equity of 16.11%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.2 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.44%.

Insider Activity

In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.66, for a total transaction of $971,490.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 229,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.38, for a total transaction of $181,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 139,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,072,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 229,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,407,751.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 46,357 shares of company stock valued at $1,693,888. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.