SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Stake in Fifth Third Bancorp

SG Americas Securities LLC has significantly reduced its investment in Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) by 84.9% during the fourth quarter, as noted in the firm's latest 13F filing with the SEC. Following the sale of 76,273 shares, SG Americas now holds a total of 13,515 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $571,000 at the conclusion of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their holdings in Fifth Third Bancorp. For instance, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake by 3.7% in the third quarter, now owning 20,774,462 shares worth around $889,978,000 after acquiring an additional 732,651 shares. Additionally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position by 4.8%, now holding 8,679,671 shares valued at $371,837,000, following a purchase of 399,827 shares in the same quarter.

Furthermore, Franklin Resources Inc. enhanced its holdings by 8.1%, now owning 5,476,374 shares valued at $242,713,000 after buying 409,292 more shares. Similarly, Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its ownership by 3.5%, ending the quarter with 2,224,047 shares worth about $95,278,000 after purchasing an additional 75,024 shares.

Lastly, Zacks Investment Management increased its stake by 10%, now owning 1,737,866 shares worth approximately $74,450,000 after acquiring 158,067 shares in the last quarter. Overall, institutional investors now own 83.79% of Fifth Third Bancorp's stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Stock Performance

As of Friday, Fifth Third Bancorp's stock opened at $44.31. The stock has experienced a one-year low of $32.29 and a high of $49.07. The company has a market capitalization of $29.71 billion and displays a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 14.11. The P/E growth (P/E/G) ratio stands at 1.44 with a beta of 1.24. In terms of liquidity, the company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, and both its quick and current ratios are at 0.80. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $44.55, while the 200-day average is $43.28.

Fifth Third Bancorp Dividend Announcement

Recently, Fifth Third Bancorp declared a quarterly dividend, which was distributed on January 15th to investors recorded by December 31st. This dividend, valued at $0.37 per share, translates to an annualized dividend of $1.48, yielding 3.34%. The payout ratio for the company is reported to be 47.13%.

Analyst Ratings and Insights

Various research firms have made recent assessments regarding FITB. For example, Baird R W downgraded Fifth Third Bancorp from a "strong-buy" to a "hold" rating on October 21st. Conversely, Piper Sandler has maintained an "overweight" rating on the stock while adjusting its price target from $54.00 down to $53.00.

Moreover, DA Davidson has lifted its target from $49.00 to $50.00, assigning a "neutral" rating. Meanwhile, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target from $45.00 to $51.00, designating a "market perform" rating. Lastly, Barclays raised its target from $51.00 to $56.00, giving the stock an "overweight" rating. Overall, the current consensus rating for Fifth Third Bancorp is "Hold," with an average target price set at $46.75 from the analysts following the stock.

Fifth Third Bancorp Overview

Fifth Third Bancorp serves as the bank holding company for Fifth Third Bank, National Association, providing a spectrum of financial products and services across the United States. The company's operations are categorized into three segments: Commercial Banking, Consumer and Small Business Banking, and Wealth and Asset Management.

investment, banking, dividends