Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB) said on Friday its preliminary stress capital buffer under the Federal Reserve’s severely adverse scenario is 3.2%, effective October 1.
Fifth Third’s said its Common Equity Tier 1 (“CET1”) ratio at March 31, of 10.5% significantly exceeds the regulatory minimum of 4.5% plus the stress capital buffer, reflecting strong capital levels.
The company intends to recommend to its Board a 2 cent per share increase to the quarterly cash dividend on its common stock in September.
“We continue to have the capacity to increase our common dividend, to return capital through share repurchases consistent with our prior commentary, and to grow capital to support organic investments and lending in the communities we serve,” said CEO Tim Spence.
Fifth Third may elect to repurchase shares consistent with its publicly stated CET1 target of 10.5%, it added.