Troubled Banks Weigh on U.S. Bancorp

U.S. Bancorp (USB Quote) missed Wall Street's third-quarter estimates Tuesday, as sliding profits were hit by an increased loan-loss cushion and losses tied to securities.

U.S. Bancorp reported third-quarter net income of $576 million, or 32 cents per diluted common share, missing the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of 47 cents per share. The $247 billion Minneapolis-based holding company reported net income of $950 million last quarter and $1.1 billion in the third quarter of 2007.

Profits were impacted by $411 million in securities losses and an increase in the quarterly provision for loan loss reserves, to $748 million, from $596 million last quarter and $199 million in September 2008. ...