Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.03 EPS

Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The bank reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.03), Zacks reports. Itau Unibanco had a return on equity of 19.60% and a net margin of 16.30%.The company had revenue of $7.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.98 billion.

Itau Unibanco Price Performance

Itau Unibanco stock traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $8.65. The company had a trading volume of 10,322,271 shares, compared to its average volume of 25,632,832. The company has a market capitalization of $95.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.58. Itau Unibanco has a 1 year low of $4.73 and a 1 year high of $9.10. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $7.09.

Itau Unibanco Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.0032 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 2nd. Itau Unibanco’s payout ratio is presently 4.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITUB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Itau Unibanco in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised shares of Itau Unibanco from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Itau Unibanco from $6.80 to $7.77 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $7.77.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itau Unibanco

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ITUB. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Itau Unibanco by 11.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 445,578 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,450,000 after buying an additional 46,608 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Itau Unibanco by 28.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,996,699 shares of the bank’s stock worth $27,482,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107,607 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Itau Unibanco by 332.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,966 shares of the bank’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 5,355 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its holdings in Itau Unibanco by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 118,405 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $804,000 after acquiring an additional 12,442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Itau Unibanco by 425.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 356,467 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,420,000 after acquiring an additional 288,602 shares during the period.

Itau Unibanco Company Profile

Itaú Unibanco SA (NYSE: ITUB) is a Brazilian banking and financial services conglomerate headquartered in São Paulo. The company was formed by the merger of Banco Itaú and Unibanco in 2008 and is one of the largest private-sector banks in Brazil and among the leading banks in Latin America. Itaú Unibanco is publicly listed in Brazil and maintains an international listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

The bank offers a full range of financial products and services across retail, commercial and wholesale banking.