JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 3,339,906 Shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its position in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 47,489,609 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 3,339,906 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $235,548,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the third quarter worth about $1,215,000. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,522,486 shares of the bank’s stock worth $83,899,000 after purchasing an additional 861,500 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 23.2% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 25,586 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 4,823 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 1.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,899,587 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $174,930,000 after purchasing an additional 346,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Haven Global Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,284,000.

Itaú Unibanco Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of Itaú Unibanco stock opened at $5.50 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $59.24 billion, a PE ratio of 7.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 1 year low of $4.42 and a 1 year high of $6.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $5.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.30.

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

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on ITUB. HSBC upgraded Itaú Unibanco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.18 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $6.27.

Itaú Unibanco 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.