Zions Bancorporation N.A. Purchases 15,281 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Zions Bancorporation N.A. grew its position in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 9.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 172,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 15,281 shares during the quarter. U.S. Bancorp makes up about 0.6% of Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Zions Bancorporation N.A.’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $7,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter worth $25,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the first quarter worth $31,000. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter worth $30,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the second quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the first quarter worth $39,000. 77.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:USB opened at $51.17 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $79.83 billion, a PE ratio of 15.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.02. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $35.02 and a twelve month high of $51.76. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $46.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.58.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, September 12th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

U.S. Bancorp Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This is a positive change from U.S. Bancorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 129,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,363,603.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on USB. Royal Bank of Canada set a $53.00 price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, U.S. Bancorp has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.12.

About U.S. Bancorp

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.