Axa S.A. Buys 67,759 Shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)

Axa S.A. lifted its stake in shares of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) by 195.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 102,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 67,759 shares during the period. Axa S.A.’s holdings in U.S. Bancorp were worth $4,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in USB. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in U.S. Bancorp by 1,088.9% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. bought a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in U.S. Bancorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new stake in U.S. Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on U.S. Bancorp from $61.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $65.00 to $55.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $51.00 target price (down previously from $57.00) on shares of U.S. Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of U.S. Bancorp from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on U.S. Bancorp from $56.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $50.48.

Insider Activity at U.S. Bancorp

In other news, insider Jodi L. Richard sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.59, for a total transaction of $1,427,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,749,006.10. The trade was a 23.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Aleem Gillani acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $37.32 per share, with a total value of $186,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 15,000 shares in the company, valued at $559,800. The trade was a 50.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

U.S. Bancorp Stock Performance

NYSE:USB opened at $41.03 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $63.92 billion, a PE ratio of 10.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.97. U.S. Bancorp has a twelve month low of $35.18 and a twelve month high of $53.98. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.27.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.92 billion. U.S. Bancorp had a net margin of 14.75% and a return on equity of 12.94%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that U.S. Bancorp will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

U.S. Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. U.S. Bancorp’s payout ratio is 49.50%.

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.