U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $56.70 and last traded at $56.5490, with a volume of 12743026 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

USB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $52.00 price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Citigroup boosted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Barclays raised their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $56.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.19.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Up 1.1%

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $53.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.33. The company has a market capitalization of $87.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 20th. The financial services provider reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $7.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.31 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 17.66% and a return on equity of 13.48%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On U.S. Bancorp

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in U.S. Bancorp by 323.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 48,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,309,000 after purchasing an additional 36,863 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 2.1% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,453,000 after buying an additional 714 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 18.9% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 39,276 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,658,000 after buying an additional 6,252 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 2nd quarter valued at $425,000. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in U.S. Bancorp by 78.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 535 shares during the period. 77.60% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.