Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in U.S. Bancorp $USB

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group increased its U.S. Bancorp stake by 289.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 169,955 shares valued at about $9.1 million.
• U.S. Bancorp reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.18 and revenue of $7.32 billion, both slightly ahead of analyst estimates.
• The bank continues to draw mixed Wall Street views: its consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a $61.20 price target, even as some analysts trimmed targets or kept cautious ratings.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 289.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 169,955 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 126,298 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $9,069,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of USB. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Clayton Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc increased its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 77.8% during 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.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Up 0.0%

USB stock opened at $54.85 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $85.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a PEG ratio of 0.99 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. U.S. Bancorp has a 12 month low of $42.21 and a 12 month high of $61.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $54.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.69.

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

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date 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 (DPR) is currently 43.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on USB. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $58.00 to $57.50 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, February 26th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 40,000 shares of U.S. Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider owned 207,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,813,307. The trade was a 16.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Venkatachari Dilip sold 34,522 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.52, for a total value of $1,916,661.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,292 shares in the company, valued at $2,847,731.84. This represents a 40.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.21% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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