Merit Financial Group LLC Sells 1,481 Shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Merit Financial Group LLC lessened its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,103 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,481 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $486,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. 9258 Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 8,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $294,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank lifted its stake in Fifth Third Bancorp by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 177,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,112,000 after purchasing an additional 6,684 shares in the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $44,708,000. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $32.00 price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a research report on Monday, April 1st. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, 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 research note on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $36.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fifth Third Bancorp

In related news, COO James C. Leonard sold 26,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 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 available through this link. In other Fifth Third Bancorp news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.50, for a total value of $93,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 136,922 shares in the company, valued at $5,134,575. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 48,857 shares of company stock valued at $1,787,638. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FITB opened at $38.03 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $36.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $32.95. The company has a market cap of $25.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 12 month low of $22.49 and a 12 month high of $38.28.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 17.70%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.22 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.44%.

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.