Scientech Research LLC Purchases New Position in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of USB. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased 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 valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $31,000. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Down 2.8 %

NYSE:USB opened at $44.46 on Wednesday. U.S. Bancorp has a 1 year low of $30.47 and a 1 year high of $47.31. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.42. The stock has a market cap of $69.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 1.04. 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 (NYSE:USB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.34% and a net margin of 12.55%. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 EPS. U.S. Bancorp’s quarterly revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company 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. This is an increase from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.50%. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.23%.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

USB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. StockNews.com upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised U.S. Bancorp from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $54.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, U.S. Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.34.

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.