Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. Sells 4,511,308 Shares of Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD)

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. lowered its stake in Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,105,610 shares of the bank's stock after selling 4,511,308 shares during the period. Banco Bradesco makes up approximately 2.0% of Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. owned about 0.31% of Banco Bradesco worth $62,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BBD. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,989,586 shares of the bank's stock valued at $120,122,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139,470 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Banco Bradesco by 85.5% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 3,936,542 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,519,000 after buying an additional 1,814,009 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Banco Bradesco in the 4th quarter worth about $66,000. Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in shares of Banco Bradesco by 402.4% in the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 1,802,819 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,443,000 after acquiring an additional 1,443,986 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its position in Banco Bradesco by 1,334.2% during the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 3,759,101 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,180,000 after acquiring an additional 3,496,994 shares during the period.

Banco Bradesco Stock Down 0.6 %

BBD traded down $0.02 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $2.34. 16,043,723 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 32,267,382. Banco Bradesco S.A. has a 12-month low of $1.84 and a 12-month high of $2.96. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $2.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.78, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.48.

Banco Bradesco (NYSE:BBD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 7th. The bank reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09. Banco Bradesco had a net margin of 8.46% and a return on equity of 11.43%. Analysts predict that Banco Bradesco S.A. will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Banco Bradesco Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 7th will be issued a $0.0022 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a yield of 1.08%. Banco Bradesco's dividend payout ratio is currently 6.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BBD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HSBC raised shares of Banco Bradesco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $2.80 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Banco Bradesco from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $2.40 to $2.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

About Banco Bradesco

Banco Bradesco SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides various banking products and services to individuals, corporates, and businesses in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It provides current, savings, click, and salary accounts; real estate credit, vehicle financing, payroll loans, mortgage loans, microcredit, leasing, and personal and installment credit; overdraft and agribusiness loans; debit and business cards; financial and security services; consortium products; car, personal accident, dental, travel, and life insurance; investment products; pension products; foreign currency exchange services; capitalization bonds; and internet banking services.