Cullen Capital Management LLC Reduces Position in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Cullen Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 61.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,061 shares of the bank's stock after selling 48,746 shares during the period. Cullen Capital Management LLC's holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $149,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 39.6% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 168,458 shares of the bank's stock worth $836,000 after purchasing an additional 47,798 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,389,460 shares of the bank's stock valued at $140,812,000 after buying an additional 489,873 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 82.5% in the fourth quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 600,759 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,980,000 after buying an additional 271,550 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 48,018,726 shares of the bank's stock worth $238,173,000 after acquiring an additional 4,151,459 shares during the period. Finally, Ramirez Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,282,897 shares of the bank's stock worth $6,363,000 after acquiring an additional 15,955 shares during the period.

Itaú Unibanco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITUB traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $5.47. 14,395,612 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 23,940,190. The company has a market cap of $58.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.99, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $5.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.34. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 1 year low of $4.42 and a 1 year high of $6.30.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.01). Itaú Unibanco had a net margin of 12.25% and a return on equity of 19.46%. Equities analysts predict that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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