U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Hits New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• U.S. Bancorp shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $62.15 and recently up about 2.7%, reflecting strong recent momentum in the stock.
• Wall Street sentiment remains generally positive, with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $61.57, though there are some mixed analyst views.
• The bank reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.18 per share on revenue of $7.32 billion, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, yielding about 3.4% annually.

Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $62.15 and last traded at $62.1550, with a volume of 3417110 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $60.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on USB. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $59.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded U.S. Bancorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, U.S. Bancorp currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $61.57.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Up 2.7%

The company's 50-day moving average is $56.28 and its 200 day moving average is $55.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $96.19 billion, a PE ratio of 13.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.97.

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

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. U.S. Bancorp's payout ratio is 43.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 40,000 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 207,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,813,307. This trade represents a 16.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Venkatachari Dilip sold 34,522 shares of the business'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 transaction of $1,916,661.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 51,292 shares in the company, valued at $2,847,731.84. The trade was 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 corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of U.S. Bancorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Clayton Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Main Street Group LTD bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Rossby Financial LCC lifted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 57.8% during the 4th quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 579 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NFSG Corp bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

U.S. Bancorp Company Profile

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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