Kentucky Retirement Systems Lowers Stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its position in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 0.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 117,591 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 653 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $4,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of USB. Valmark Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 2.9% during the second quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 8,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Waldron Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 13,285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $534,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 0.4% in the second quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 65,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC boosted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 4.7% during the second quarter. Kavar Capital Partners Group LLC now owns 5,555 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, STAR Financial Bank grew its position in U.S. Bancorp by 3.3% during the second quarter. STAR Financial Bank now owns 7,772 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:USB opened at $46.46 on Friday. U.S. Bancorp has a 12-month low of $30.47 and a 12-month high of $47.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $44.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The firm has a market cap of $72.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.04.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.55% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. U.S. Bancorp’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.87 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.30%. This is an increase from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Aleem Gillani purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $44.99 per share, for a total transaction of $449,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $449,900. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on USB. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Friday, September 13th. StockNews.com upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of U.S. Bancorp from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $43.50 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.18.

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.