Analysts Set U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Price Target at $48.34

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the nineteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $48.65.

A number of research firms have commented on USB. DA Davidson increased their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut U.S. Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $43.50 price objective for the company. in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of USB stock opened at $44.47 on Tuesday. U.S. Bancorp has a 1-year low of $30.47 and a 1-year high of $47.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $44.47 and its 200 day moving average is $42.46. The company has a market cap of $69.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.34% and a net margin of 12.55%. The company had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.50%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Bancorp

In other U.S. Bancorp news, Director Aleem Gillani acquired 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $44.99 per share, with a total value of $449,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $449,900. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Bancorp

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morningstar Investment Management LLC raised its position in U.S. Bancorp by 760.8% in the fourth quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC now owns 83,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,628,000 after purchasing an additional 74,094 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 2,056.5% during the 1st quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 218,668 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,774,000 after purchasing an additional 208,528 shares in the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $20,188,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 2,440.9% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 227,307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,838,000 after acquiring an additional 218,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mission Wealth Management LP boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 200.7% during the 1st quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 18,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $817,000 after acquiring an additional 12,197 shares in the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.