Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Raises Stake in U.S. Bancorp $USB

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 68% in the fourth quarter, ending with 66,768 shares valued at about $3.56 million.
• U.S. Bancorp reported solid quarterly results, with earnings of $1.18 per share beating estimates and revenue of $7.32 billion topping forecasts.
• The bank continues to return cash to shareholders, recently paying a $0.52 quarterly dividend that equates to a 3.8% annual yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a $61.20 price target.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise grew its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 68.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,768 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 27,033 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise's holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $3,563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Clayton Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 77.8% in the 3rd quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, EVP Venkatachari Dilip sold 34,522 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total transaction of $1,916,661.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,847,731.84. This represents a 40.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.00, for a total transaction of $2,280,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 207,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,813,307. This represents a 16.18% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

NYSE:USB opened at $54.49 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $84.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company's 50-day moving average is $53.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.58. U.S. Bancorp has a 12-month low of $42.21 and a 12-month high of $61.19.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 18.01% and a return on equity of 13.55%. The company had revenue of $7.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.09 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. U.S. Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

USB has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.20.

U.S. Bancorp Company Profile

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.

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