U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $65.09 and last traded at $65.06, with a volume of 2310854 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $64.29.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

USB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on U.S. Bancorp from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded U.S. Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Evercore upgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $72.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Barclays boosted their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $67.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $58.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, U.S. Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.06.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company’s 50 day moving average is $61.14 and its 200-day moving average is $57.19. The company has a market capitalization of $101.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.96.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $7.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.58 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 18.49%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that U.S. Bancorp will post 5.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is presently 41.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, insider Stephen L. Philipson sold 36,906 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.08, for a total value of $2,328,030.48. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 74,969 shares in the company, valued at $4,729,044.52. This trade represents a 32.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.21% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On U.S. Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in USB. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 32.9% in the 2nd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $469,000 after buying an additional 173 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 13,721 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $732,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 23,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 0.9% in the first quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 19,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,038,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

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.