Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Grows Stock Position in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 84.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 570,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 260,878 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $22,666,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 93.2% during the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, Director Aleem Gillani acquired 10,000 shares of U.S. Bancorp stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $44.99 per share, for a total transaction of $449,900.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $449,900. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:USB opened at $46.01 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $71.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $44.39 and a 200 day moving average of $42.32. U.S. Bancorp has a 52 week low of $30.47 and a 52 week high of $47.31.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.34% and a net margin of 12.55%. The firm had revenue of $6.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, September 12th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on USB. Citigroup increased their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $47.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. StockNews.com upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $43.00 to $42.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.18.

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.