Marshall Wace LLP Increases Stock Holdings in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 27.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,933,960 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 2,335,830 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned 0.11% of Itaú Unibanco worth $54,232,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 28,389,460 shares of the bank's stock worth $140,812,000 after purchasing an additional 489,873 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 5.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 50,829,515 shares of the bank's stock worth $338,016,000 after acquiring an additional 2,604,304 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 25,586 shares of the bank's stock valued at $169,000 after purchasing an additional 4,823 shares in the last quarter. Haven Global Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,284,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 5,310.8% in the fourth quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 783,968 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,888,000 after buying an additional 769,479 shares in the last quarter.

Itaú Unibanco Trading Up 2.2 %

NYSE:ITUB traded up $0.13 on Wednesday, reaching $5.98. 9,124,769 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,939,909. The business has a fifty day moving average of $5.41 and a 200-day moving average of $5.24. 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 $6.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.65.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last posted 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 return on equity of 19.46% and a net margin of 12.25%. As a group, analysts expect 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. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were paid 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 presently 2.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ITUB has been the topic of several recent research reports. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $6.27.

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.