U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-one research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $50.66.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on USB. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $49.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $56.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. DA Davidson dropped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “underweight” rating and set a $43.50 price objective (down previously from $51.00) on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 3rd.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NYSE USB opened at $38.21 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market capitalization of $59.53 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.77. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $35.18 and a twelve month high of $53.98.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.92 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 14.75%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.23%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 52.77%.

Insider Activity at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.59, for a total value of $1,427,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,749,006.10. This represents a 23.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Terrance R. Dolan sold 66,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total transaction of $3,114,246.32. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 209,482 shares in the company, valued at $9,837,274.72. This trade represents a 24.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 219,812 shares of company stock worth $10,385,665. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in USB. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1,088.9% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 70.8% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

About U.S. Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp, a financial services holding company, provides various financial services to individuals, businesses, institutional organizations, governmental entities, and other financial institutions in the United States. It operates through Wealth, Corporate, Commercial and Institutional Banking; Consumer and Business Banking; Payment Services; and Treasury and Corporate Support segments.