The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Buys 31,646 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,224,458 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,646 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $106,396,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $229,000. Wealthquest Corp bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,160,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $229,000. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 52,619 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,406,000 after acquiring an additional 2,988 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 126.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 44,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,050,000 after acquiring an additional 24,992 shares during the period. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

USB stock opened at $40.15 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. U.S. Bancorp has a 12 month low of $35.18 and a 12 month high of $53.98. The firm has a market cap of $62.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.91. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $41.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.57.

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

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.98%. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is currently 49.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Andrew Cecere sold 102,044 shares of U.S. Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.25, for a total transaction of $4,821,579.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,230,316 shares in the company, valued at $58,132,431. This trade represents a 7.66 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Terrance R. Dolan sold 66,317 shares of U.S. Bancorp 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 owns 209,482 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,837,274.72. This represents a 24.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 219,812 shares of company stock worth $10,385,665. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on USB. 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, April 17th. Wolfe Research raised shares of U.S. Bancorp from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $49.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $51.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $57.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, DA Davidson lowered their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.48.

U.S. Bancorp Profile

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.