NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) July 18, 2012--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today said its ratings and outlook on U.S. Bancorp (USB; A/Stable/A-1) are not affected by the company's strong second-quarter earnings, given the current operating conditions. The company posted pretax earnings of $1.94 billion, up from $1.83 billion the previous quarter and $1.64 billion the prior year. In the second quarter, revenue increased 2.9% from the previous quarter and 8.2% year over year because of an increase in average earning assets and fee-based income, particularly mortgage banking. The net interest margin (NIM) was 3.58%, down 2 basis points from the first quarter on higher balances in lower-yielding securities and a decline in low yields, partially offset by lower borrowing
