Independence Bank of Kentucky Grows Holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB)

Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 20.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp were worth $89,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FITB. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the first quarter worth $29,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 125.0% in the 1st quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $52,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Fifth Third Bancorp by 130.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,614 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at about $56,000. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total value of $835,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,224,883.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Jude Schramm sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 134,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,376,880. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Kevin P. Lavender sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.77, for a total transaction of $835,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 125,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,224,883.99. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,500 shares of company stock worth $1,429,920. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

Fifth Third Bancorp stock traded up $1.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $42.12. The stock had a trading volume of 4,097,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,778,560. Fifth Third Bancorp has a 52-week low of $22.49 and a 52-week high of $42.91. The company has a market capitalization of $28.81 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.24. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $38.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The financial services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.11 billion. Fifth Third Bancorp had a return on equity of 15.79% and a net margin of 17.41%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 3.3 EPS for the current year.

Fifth Third Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 28th. Fifth Third Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America upped their price target on Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $43.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fifth Third Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.56.

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.