U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $65.09 and last traded at $65.06, with a volume of 2310854 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $64.29.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. BTIG Research set a $67.50 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Monday, July 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.06.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $101.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.07. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 18.49% and a return on equity of 13.69%. The firm had revenue of $7.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is 41.52%.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On U.S. Bancorp

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,562,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,788,000. Foster & Motley Inc. bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter worth $2,968,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI bought a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $10,490,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in U.S. Bancorp in the second quarter valued at about $3,845,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

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.