Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) Shares Sold by Groupama Asset Managment

Groupama Asset Managment lessened its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) by 28.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 146,526 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 57,693 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment’s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $733,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 39.6% in the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 168,458 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $836,000 after buying an additional 47,798 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Itaú Unibanco by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,389,460 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $140,812,000 after acquiring an additional 489,873 shares in the last quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 82.5% in the fourth quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 600,759 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,980,000 after acquiring an additional 271,550 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Itaú Unibanco by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 48,018,726 shares of the bank’s stock worth $238,173,000 after purchasing an additional 4,151,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,282,897 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,363,000 after purchasing an additional 15,955 shares during the period.

Itaú Unibanco Stock Performance

NYSE:ITUB opened at $5.54 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.73 billion, a PE ratio of 7.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $4.42 and a fifty-two week high of $6.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $5.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.29.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.01). Itaú Unibanco had a net margin of 12.25% and a return on equity of 19.46%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were paid a $0.0527 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This is a positive change from Itaú Unibanco’s previous dividend of $0.00. Itaú Unibanco’s payout ratio is currently 2.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ITUB shares. HSBC raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.18 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Itaú Unibanco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.27.

Itaú Unibanco Company Profile

Itaú Unibanco Holding SA offers a range of financial products and services to individuals and corporate customers in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Wholesale Banking, and Activities with the Market + Corporation. It offers current account; loans; credit and debit cards; investment and commercial banking services; real estate lending services; financing and investment services; economic, financial and brokerage advisory; and leasing and foreign exchange services.