Elevated Capital Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Elevated Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 23,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 761 shares during the period. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $1,077,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of USB. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1,438.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,263,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $89,853,000 after buying an additional 2,116,175 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 313.8% in the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 2,698,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $105,903,000 after purchasing an additional 2,046,522 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 88.9% in the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,331,050 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,198,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097,179 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 16.2% during the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 6,941,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $310,284,000 after purchasing an additional 967,143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 15.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,846,497 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $271,806,000 after purchasing an additional 925,073 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

NYSE:USB opened at $48.03 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $30.47 and a twelve month high of $50.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.03.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 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 $6.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect 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 initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase 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 yield of 4.16%. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 129,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,363,603.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on USB shares. Stephens raised their price target on 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. Royal Bank of Canada set a $53.00 price objective on U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $43.50 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, U.S. Bancorp currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.71.

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.