Sowell Financial Services LLC Sells 7,496 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Sowell Financial Services LLC lowered its holdings in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 28.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,496 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC's holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 86.1% during the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 642 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:USB traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $43.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 12,696,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,137,199. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.80. U.S. Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $35.18 and a fifty-two week high of $53.98. The company has a market capitalization of $67.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.99.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.06. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 13.02%. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.63%. U.S. Bancorp's dividend payout ratio is 49.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on USB. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $57.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $51.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Cowen started coverage on U.S. Bancorp in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $49.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $56.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, Director Aleem Gillani purchased 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $37.32 per share, for a total transaction of $186,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $559,800. The trade was a 50.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company's stock.

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.