Virtu Financial LLC Makes New Investment in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 6,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $288,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. ZEGA Investments LLC bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $1,624,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Washington Trust Bank boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 168,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,056,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares in the last quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $234,000. Finally, Kiker Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $509,000. Institutional investors own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:USB opened at $43.25 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $45.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.57. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $37.81 and a twelve month high of $53.98.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.01. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The business had revenue of $7.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.62%. U.S. Bancorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on USB shares. Bank of America dropped their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $50.00 to $49.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 17th. Compass Point upped their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $60.00 to $59.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $57.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.48.

Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, CEO Andrew Cecere sold 102,044 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.25, for a total transaction of $4,821,579.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,230,316 shares in the company, valued at $58,132,431. This trade represents a 7.66 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Terrance R. Dolan sold 66,317 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.96, for a total transaction of $3,114,246.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 209,482 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,837,274.72. This represents a 24.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 219,812 shares of company stock valued at $10,385,665. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

U.S. Bancorp 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.