Tom Reese/Paul Rubillo, Dividend.com
Ohio-based regional bank Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) reported Thursday a nearly $2.2 billion fourth quarter loss amid the still-worsening national lending crisis.
The company blamed the dismal earnings report on losses related to commercial, residential, builder, and developer loans, as well as consumer residential real estate loans. The bulk of these loans took place in Florida and Michigan.
Fifth Third's fourth quarter earnings per share (EPS) loss of $2.18 billion was around $3.82 per share. In the same period a year ago, the company netted a profit of $16 million, or 3 cents a share, in the same period.
Analysts were expecting profits of 1 cent per share for the fourth quarter.
The Bottom Line
We have avoided shares of FITB since our early June coverage began, when the stock was trading at $16.74. The company has a 1.00% dividend yield, based on last night's closing stock price of $3.99. The shares have set new historic lows and there is not technical support to speak of. If the shares can manage to turn it around, we see overhead resistance at the $7 level initially. We would look elsewhere for better investment opportunities.
Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com Rating of 2.5 out of 5 stars.
Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.
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