Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 3,651,963 Shares of U.S. Bancorp $USB

Key Points

• Van ECK Associates Corp cut its U.S. Bancorp stake by 43.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 3,651,963 shares and leaving it with 4,810,183 shares valued at about $256.7 million.
• U.S. Bancorp reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.18 versus the $1.14 estimate and revenue of $7.32 billion, up 4.7% year over year.
• Despite some insider selling, Wall Street remains broadly positive: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating with an average price target of $61.20, while USB shares were up 2.2% to $58.90.

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its stake in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 43.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,810,183 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,651,963 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.31% of U.S. Bancorp worth $256,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in USB. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the third quarter worth $25,000. Clayton Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the third quarter worth $28,000. Binnacle Investments Inc boosted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 77.8% in the third quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc now owns 624 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC boosted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 57.8% in the fourth quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 579 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Up 2.2%

USB stock opened at $58.90 on Friday. U.S. Bancorp has a fifty-two week low of $42.55 and a fifty-two week high of $61.19. The business's 50-day moving average is $55.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a market cap of $91.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.97.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on USB. Truist Financial lowered their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Weiss Ratings raised U.S. Bancorp from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Friday, April 17th. Barclays upped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $61.20.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Bancorp

In other U.S. Bancorp news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.00, for a total value of $2,280,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 207,251 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,813,307. This represents a 16.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Venkatachari Dilip sold 34,522 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 51,292 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,847,731.84. This represents a 40.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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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