Best in Class: US Bancorp an Overlooked Gem

US Bancorp (USB Quote) has remained one of the strongest banks throughout the financial crisis, although it is easily overlooked among its large-cap counterparts.

Minneapolis-based US Bancorp, the parent company to U.S. Bank, is the sixth largest commercial bank by assets $264 billion. While it might not be as recognizable as larger rivals like Bank of America (BAC Quote), Citigroup (WFC Quote) and Wells Fargo (WFC Quote), it signaled its strength last week by becoming among the first of the big banks to repay the government's $6.6 billion investment made last year through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

With a franchise spanning much of the housing-ravished Midwest and western parts of the country, US Bancorp was ripe to be leveled by the housing downturn and credit crisis that took down Washington Mutual and Wachovia. But the combination of the company's conservative underwriting standards and diverse mix of businesses -- including a heavy reliance on fee revenue -- proved to fortify US Bancorp over the past two years.

US Bancorp was one of 10 banks that government stress tests last month determined did not have to raise additional capital. But in preparation to pay back the TARP funds, it was one of many banks that took advantage of the lenient equity markets last month to raise $2.5 billion from the sale of common stock and issue $1 billion in unsecured senior notes.

"[T]hink about how important it is in the last year or two to be able to go and approach a customer, a corporate customer or a small business customer or a consumer and be able to say to them we represent one of America's strongest banks," Chairman and CEO Richard Davis said at a recent investor presentation.