U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Receives $48.34 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $48.65.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on USB. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised shares of U.S. Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Friday, September 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Aleem Gillani purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $44.99 per share, for a total transaction of $449,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $449,900. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Bancorp

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in USB. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its position in U.S. Bancorp by 93.2% in the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

USB traded up $0.72 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $44.70. 5,438,129 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,296,280. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $44.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.46. U.S. Bancorp has a 52-week low of $30.47 and a 52-week high of $47.31.

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

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.47%. This is a boost from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 66.23%.

U.S. Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.