The Q4 results confirmed why U.S. Bancorp (USB) is one of the most valuable financial institutions. The only problem is that the bank trades at a sky-high valuation even after the recent drop in the stock price. $USB, U.S. Bancorp / 1440 The bank again reported incredibly strong returns with a return on assets of 1.44% and average common equity of 14.0%. Unfortunately, the bank trades at a very high 1.7x book value. At the end of Q4, USB had a book value of only $23.28 while the stock traded for $39.05. USB increased the provision for credit losses by 8.2% from the prior quarter to $305 million. At the same time, nonperforming assets declined by $44 million from the prior quarter. The bank only trades for roughly 11.5x 2016 EPS estimates, but the book value is stretched at the current stock price. Disclosure: No position mentioned