Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co Boosts Stock Position in U.S. Bancorp $USB

Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 21.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 311,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 56,000 shares during the quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $15,056,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 323.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 48,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 36,863 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 2.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,453,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 18.9% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 39,276 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,658,000 after purchasing an additional 6,252 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter valued at $425,000. Finally, Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 39.2% during the second quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 17,785 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 5,013 shares during the period. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at U.S. Bancorp

In related news, insider Mark G. Runkel sold 32,195 shares of U.S. Bancorp stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.65, for a total value of $1,952,626.75. Following the transaction, the insider owned 97,728 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,927,203.20. This trade represents a 24.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of U.S. Bancorp stock opened at $57.82 on Friday. U.S. Bancorp has a 52 week low of $35.18 and a 52 week high of $61.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $89.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $55.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.23.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $7.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 17.66% and a return on equity of 13.48%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.07 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is 45.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on USB. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $52.00 price objective on U.S. Bancorp and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $57.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated a “positive” rating on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Friday, October 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.79.

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.