Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) Trading 3.3% Higher – Time to Buy?

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)’s stock price traded up 3.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $5.71 and last traded at $5.72. 1,790,045 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 23,449,733 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Itaú Unibanco Stock Up 3.1 %

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 company has a market cap of $61.45 billion, a PE ratio of 7.31, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $5.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.29.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, analysts predict that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 2.82%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Itaú Unibanco

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ITUB. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Itaú Unibanco by 31.1% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 72,647 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 17,216 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 12,592.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,484,343 shares of the bank’s stock worth $156,171,000 after buying an additional 23,299,313 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in Itaú Unibanco in the third quarter worth about $1,215,000. Walleye Trading LLC bought a new stake in Itaú Unibanco during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $147,000. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors grew its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 23.7% during the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 23,967 shares of the bank’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 4,592 shares during the period.

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.