Blueshift Asset Management LLC Boosts Position in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 198.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 125,310 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 83,320 shares during the period. Blueshift Asset Management LLC's holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 3.5% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 4,000.3% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 12,260 shares of the bank's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 11,961 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Itaú Unibanco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,854,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 776,466 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,851,000 after acquiring an additional 126,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natural Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $445,000.

Itaú Unibanco Trading Up 1.8 %

ITUB traded up $0.10 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $5.69. The company had a trading volume of 14,550,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,354,053. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.42 and a 52 week high of $6.35. The stock has a market cap of $61.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.29, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.31.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last released 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 return on equity of 19.46% and a net margin of 12.25%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were paid 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 currently 2.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ITUB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Itaú Unibanco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. 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 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus 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.