Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 23,050,000 shares, a growth of 22.7% from the October 15th total of 18,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,070,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.7 days. Approximately 3.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on FITB. Bank of America raised their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays increased their target price on Fifth Third Bancorp from $43.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Fifth Third Bancorp from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.09.

Insider Activity at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, EVP Kristine R. Garrett sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.67, for a total transaction of $327,525.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 55,913 shares in the company, valued at $2,441,720.71. This represents a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jude Schramm sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total value of $840,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 114,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,805,724. This represents a 14.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Fifth Third Bancorp

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in FITB. Brophy Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in the third quarter worth $302,000. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 43,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,850,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 331,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,220,000 after purchasing an additional 3,257 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 204,838 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,775,000 after buying an additional 11,978 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 163,226 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,993,000 after buying an additional 3,331 shares in the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fifth Third Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FITB traded down $0.27 on Friday, reaching $46.99. 3,522,731 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,754,390. Fifth Third Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $26.89 and a fifty-two week high of $48.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.51 billion, a PE ratio of 15.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company’s 50 day moving average is $43.61 and its 200-day moving average is $40.38.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 14.58% and a net margin of 16.58%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This is a boost from Fifth Third Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Fifth Third Bancorp’s payout ratio is 49.17%.

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.