Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Purchases 20,374 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,242,645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,374 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.08% of U.S. Bancorp worth $56,826,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 222.7% in the third quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE USB opened at $52.12 on Friday. U.S. Bancorp has a 52 week low of $37.81 and a 52 week high of $53.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $48.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a market cap of $81.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.03.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.84%. This is an increase from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 61.16%.

U.S. Bancorp declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

USB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley raised U.S. Bancorp from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $54.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $51.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.72.

Insider Activity at U.S. Bancorp

In other U.S. Bancorp news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.03, for a total value of $1,225,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 129,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,363,603.70. This trade represents a 16.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

U.S. Bancorp Company 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.