Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich Cuts Stock Position in U.S. Bancorp $USB

Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lessened its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,341,118 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 30,382 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $72,063,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in USB. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Clayton Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc raised 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 buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on USB shares. Evercore increased their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a research note on Friday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $61.20.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

USB stock opened at $52.70 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.81. U.S. Bancorp has a 1 year low of $42.21 and a 1 year high of $61.19. The company has a market cap of $81.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.00. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $53.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.36.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) 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. The company had revenue of $7.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.55% and a net margin of 18.01%.U.S. Bancorp’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio is 43.61%.

Insider Activity at U.S. Bancorp

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 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 trade represents a 16.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 51,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,847,731.84. This trade represents a 40.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.21% of the stock is 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.