Anthracite Investment Company Inc. Grows Stake in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Anthracite Investment Company Inc. boosted its stake in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 26.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 627,739 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 130,000 shares during the quarter. Itaú Unibanco makes up 1.1% of Anthracite Investment Company Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Anthracite Investment Company Inc.'s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $3,114,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ITUB. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 33.0% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 9,269,375 shares of the bank's stock worth $45,976,000 after buying an additional 2,302,211 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 27.6% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 373,234 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,851,000 after acquiring an additional 80,747 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Itaú Unibanco by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,009,983 shares of the bank's stock worth $19,890,000 after purchasing an additional 274,750 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 198.4% in the 4th quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC now owns 125,310 shares of the bank's stock valued at $622,000 after purchasing an additional 83,320 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners increased its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,162,884 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,768,000 after purchasing an additional 38,924 shares during the last quarter.

Itaú Unibanco Stock Performance

NYSE:ITUB traded down $0.09 on Friday, reaching $5.52. 13,791,612 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,588,458. The firm has a market cap of $59.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. 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 simple moving average of $5.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.31. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.42 and a 52 week high of $6.30.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ITUB shares. HSBC upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $6.18 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average 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.