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

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $67.0625.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays lifted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, CLSA set a $67.50 price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Monday, July 20th.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE USB opened at $63.81 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $60.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $57.00. The company has a market capitalization of $98.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.96. U.S. Bancorp has a 12 month low of $43.96 and a 12 month high of $65.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $7.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.58 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 18.49% and a return on equity of 13.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Stephen L. Philipson sold 36,906 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.08, for a total transaction of $2,328,030.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 74,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,729,044.52. This represents a 32.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in USB. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Main Street Group LTD bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Binnacle Investments Inc boosted its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 77.8% during the 3rd quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the period. Finally, NFSG Corp bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About U.S. Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) is a bank holding company and the parent of U.S. Bank, a national commercial bank that provides a wide range of banking, investment, mortgage, trust and payment services. The company operates through consumer and business banking, commercial banking, payment services, and wealth management segments. Its product set includes deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, mortgage origination and servicing, credit and debit card services, treasury and cash management, merchant processing, and institutional and trust services.

Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.