Boston Research & Management Inc. Has $3.59 Million Stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Boston Research & Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 90,531 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,290 shares during the quarter. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $3,594,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 15,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $670,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares during the last quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,167 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares in the last quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $308,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at $297,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in U.S. Bancorp by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $163,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other U.S. Bancorp news, Director Aleem Gillani bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $44.99 per share, with a total value of $449,900.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $449,900. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE:USB opened at $46.01 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $71.80 billion, a PE ratio of 15.24, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.81. U.S. Bancorp has a 52-week low of $30.47 and a 52-week high of $47.31.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.81 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.55% and a return on equity of 13.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, September 12th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This is an increase from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is 66.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on USB. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.