Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Investment Research

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) was upgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday. The firm currently has a $30.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock. Zacks Investment Research‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 8.13% from the company’s previous close.

According to Zacks, “Shares of Fifth Third have outperformed the industry over the past three months. Also, the company has an impressive earnings surprise history, having beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the trailing four quarters. The company’s ongoing strategic efforts, such as Project North Star, will likely boost its efficiency and revenues over the long run. Also, margin pressure seems to be easing gradually due to the Fed’s interest rate hikes and improving economic backdrop. However, elevated expenses on the company’s branch digitization initiative and legal issues remain headwinds. Also, significant exposure to commercial loans remains a concern. Nevertheless, the company's involvement in steady capital deployment activities remains impressive.”

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A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on FITB. BidaskClub upgraded shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 19th. Bank of America set a $29.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 23rd. ValuEngine raised shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 11th. Finally, Raymond James set a $30.00 target price on shares of Fifth Third Bancorp and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.27.

FITB traded up $0.68 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $27.75. The company had a trading volume of 6,213,110 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,865,306. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.25 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.32. Fifth Third Bancorp has a twelve month low of $22.12 and a twelve month high of $34.67.

Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.02. Fifth Third Bancorp had a net margin of 27.32% and a return on equity of 12.34%. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.48 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Fifth Third Bancorp will post 2.76 EPS for the current year.

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FITB. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 487 shares during the period. JOYN Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 38.6% during the 4th quarter. JOYN Advisors Inc. now owns 1,722 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Executive Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fifth Third Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,000. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp by 2,225.3% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 1,765,315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 1,689,396 shares during the period. Finally, Lindbrook Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fifth Third Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at $75,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

About Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States. The company's Commercial Banking segment offers credit intermediation, cash management, and financial services; lending and depository products; and cash management, foreign exchange and international trade finance, derivatives and capital markets services, asset-based lending, real estate finance, public finance, commercial leasing, and syndicated finance for business, government, and professional customers.

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