Morgan Stanley Upgrades U.S. Bancorp's Preferred Stock Rating

A recent report highlights Morgan Stanley's upgrade of U.S. Bancorp - Preferred Stock outlook to Overweight from Equal-Weight. Institutional positions show a mixed sentiment, with slight decreases in portfolios but still indicate interest in USB.PRR.

Date: 01-10-2024

AI Rating: 6

The report indicates that Morgan Stanley has upgraded its outlook for U.S. Bancorp - Preferred Stock (USB.PRR) from Equal-Weight to Overweight. This action is typically a positive signal for investors, suggesting that the stock could experience growth.

The report mentions that there are currently 31 funds or institutions reporting positions in U.S. Bancorp - Preferred Stock, which is unchanged from the previous quarter, indicating stability in institutional interest.

However, the report highlights that total shares owned by institutions decreased by 1.02% to 6,824K shares over the last three months. This slight decrease might raise concerns about the long-term strength of institutional confidence in the stock.

Looking at individual funds, significant movements were noted:

PFF - iShares Preferred and Income Securities ETF

2,883K shares

2.29%

PGX - Invesco Preferred ETF also decreased its holdings from 1,300K to 1,270K shares, reflecting a 2.31% decrease.
Conversely, PGF - Invesco Financial Preferred ETF slightly increased its holdings from 616K to 618K shares, a modest increase of 0.37%.
PFFD - Global X U.S. Preferred ETF reported a 2.96% decrease in holdings, and PSK - SPDR Wells Fargo Preferred Stock ETF decreased its allocation by 1.29%.

While there are varying changes in institutional holdings, the overall decrease in shares owned could suggest a cautious approach among some investors. Yet, the upgrade from Morgan Stanley may catalyze interest and potential buying pressure.

This mixed sentiment could lead to fluctuations in USB.PRR’s stock price as the market assesses the implications of the upgrade amidst portfolio reductions by several funds.

Stocks: USB.PRR