Wright Investors Service Inc. Lowers Holdings in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Wright Investors Service Inc. decreased its holdings in U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Free Report) by 67.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,948 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,607 shares during the quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $284,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of USB. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 63,913,931 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,922,784,000 after buying an additional 15,746,852 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in U.S. Bancorp by 153.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,949,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $374,573,000 after acquiring an additional 4,807,662 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in U.S. Bancorp by 723.7% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,211,555 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $146,864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,821,642 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 1,438.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,263,296 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $89,853,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116,175 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp by 109.7% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 3,531,400 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $161,491,000 after purchasing an additional 1,847,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.60% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.03, for a total transaction of $1,225,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 129,790 shares in the company, valued at $6,363,603.70. This trade represents a 16.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.23% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

U.S. Bancorp Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of U.S. Bancorp stock traded up $0.69 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $49.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,751,609 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,290,394. The stock has a market cap of $76.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $37.81 and a twelve month high of $53.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $50.22 and a 200-day moving average of $46.61.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.04. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 12.92% and a return on equity of 12.91%. The company had revenue of $6.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. U.S. Bancorp's revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that U.S. Bancorp will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.07%. U.S. Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Compass Point raised their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered U.S. Bancorp from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $51.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup raised U.S. Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $49.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, DA Davidson upgraded shares of U.S. Bancorp from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $58.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, U.S. Bancorp has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $54.07.

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.