SFE Investment Counsel Acquires 15,893 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

SFE Investment Counsel boosted its stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 221,629 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,893 shares during the quarter. U.S. Bancorp comprises about 1.9% of SFE Investment Counsel's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. SFE Investment Counsel's holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $9,357,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 323.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 48,274 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,309,000 after acquiring an additional 36,863 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth approximately $288,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Modern Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $926,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 791,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,838,000 after purchasing an additional 67,011 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.60% of the company's stock.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Up 0.6%

USB stock traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $46.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,082,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,850,706. The company's fifty day moving average price is $44.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $35.18 and a twelve month high of $53.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.08, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.99.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.08% and a net margin of 16.30%. The business had revenue of $7.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. U.S. Bancorp's quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. U.S. Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Souheil Badran sold 23,727 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.34, for a total value of $1,099,509.18. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 70,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,259,833.64. This represents a 25.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on USB shares. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen initiated coverage on U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $43.50 price target (down previously from $51.00) on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.50.

U.S. Bancorp Profile

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.