Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The bank reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $8.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.29 billion. Itau Unibanco had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 22.01%.

Itau Unibanco Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE:ITUB traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $8.35. 5,003,073 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 24,211,348. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $8.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.38. Itau Unibanco has a 12 month low of $6.39 and a 12 month high of $9.60.

Itau Unibanco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.068 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 22nd. Itau Unibanco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4.11%.

Insider Transactions at Itau Unibanco

In related news, insider Vanzo Carlos Orestes sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.24, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,008,014 shares in the company, valued at $8,306,035.36. This trade represents a 5.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itau Unibanco

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd increased its position in shares of Itau Unibanco by 104.3% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 84,543,938 shares of the bank’s stock worth $574,053,000 after buying an additional 43,153,787 shares during the period. Viking Global Investors LP bought a new position in Itau Unibanco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $203,319,000. Samlyn Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Itau Unibanco in the 3rd quarter valued at $99,388,000. Boston Partners raised its holdings in shares of Itau Unibanco by 1,667.7% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 12,413,727 shares of the bank’s stock worth $91,117,000 after acquiring an additional 11,711,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GQG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Itau Unibanco by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 96,959,405 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $694,229,000 after buying an additional 5,737,696 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on ITUB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Itau Unibanco from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Itau Unibanco in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $10.00.

About Itau Unibanco

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.