Equity Investment Corp Boosts Stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Equity Investment Corp boosted its stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 2.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,754,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 78,064 shares during the period. U.S. Bancorp makes up approximately 2.9% of Equity Investment Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Equity Investment Corp’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $125,985,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 222.7% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of U.S. Bancorp stock opened at $49.90 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $46.99 and a 200-day moving average of $43.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $77.85 billion, a PE ratio of 15.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.02. U.S. Bancorp has a 1-year low of $36.49 and a 1-year high of $51.76.

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

U.S. Bancorp declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, September 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.16%.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.03, for a total transaction of $1,225,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on USB shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $54.00 price objective on U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley upgraded U.S. Bancorp from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $51.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.22.

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.