U.S. Bancorp $USB Shares Sold by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Baird Financial Group reduced its U.S. Bancorp stake by 1.3% in the second quarter, selling 22,493 shares and retaining 1.7 million shares worth approximately $102.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 77.6% of the company.
• U.S. Bancorp insiders reported notable selling, including CEO Gunjan Kedia’s sale of 27,267 shares and Stephen L. Philipson’s sale of 36,906 shares. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the stock.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $67.06, while the company recently exceeded quarterly earnings expectations and pays a $0.52 quarterly dividend, yielding about 3.3%.

Baird Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,700,555 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 22,493 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of U.S. Bancorp worth $102,714,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 32.9% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 687 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Blalock Williams LLC grew its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blalock Williams LLC now owns 4,680 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,780 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $469,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 13,721 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $732,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Formidable Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 0.8% during the first quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 23,373 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,247,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.60% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Gunjan Kedia sold 27,267 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.37, for a total value of $1,700,642.79. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 426,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,585,960.94. This trade represents a 6.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Stephen L. Philipson sold 36,906 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.08, for a total value of $2,328,030.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 74,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,729,044.52. This represents a 32.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

USB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research set a $67.50 target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Monday, July 20th. Truist Financial upped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. CLSA set a $67.50 target price on U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $67.06.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

U.S. Bancorp stock opened at $62.52 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $63.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.93. U.S. Bancorp has a 52 week low of $45.02 and a 52 week high of $66.07.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.58 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 18.49% and a return on equity of 13.69%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.22 earnings per share for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. U.S. Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.52%.

U.S. Bancorp Profile

U.S. Bancorp NYSE: USB is a financial services holding company and the parent organization of U.S. Bank, a full-service commercial bank. The company provides deposit accounts, consumer and business loans, mortgages, credit and debit cards, payment services, and other banking products to individuals, businesses, institutions and government entities.

Through its wealth, corporate and commercial banking operations, U.S. Bancorp also offers investment management, trust and custody services, treasury management, capital markets support, equipment finance and other specialized financial solutions.

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