U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $54.07.

USB has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stephens upped their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 target price on U.S. Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, October 17th.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of USB stock opened at $48.50 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.05. U.S. Bancorp has a 12-month low of $37.81 and a 12-month high of $53.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $50.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.40.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.90 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 12.91%. U.S. Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.03, for a total transaction of $1,225,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 129,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,363,603.70. This trade represents a 16.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On U.S. Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 37.3% in the 4th quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 37,361 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,787,000 after purchasing an additional 10,145 shares during the period. InvesTrust bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $6,516,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,018,000. One Wealth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,000. Finally, First County Bank CT lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. First County Bank CT now owns 19,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $925,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.