LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Acquires Shares of 167,417 Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. $ITUB

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management initiated a new position in Itaú Unibanco, buying 167,417 shares valued at about $1.4 million in the first quarter.
• The bank recently reported mixed quarterly results, with earnings of $0.20 per share missing estimates and revenue also coming in below expectations. Analysts still expect full-year EPS of about 0.89.
• Itaú Unibanco announced a special dividend of $0.068 per share, while analysts maintain a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $10.00.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. bought a new position in Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 167,417 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,403,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank grew its stake in Itau Unibanco by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 10,895 shares of the bank's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 1,092 shares in the last quarter. Gould Asset Management LLC CA lifted its stake in Itau Unibanco by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Gould Asset Management LLC CA now owns 40,777 shares of the bank's stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,187 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Itau Unibanco by 19.7% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,135 shares of the bank's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 1,341 shares in the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Itau Unibanco by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 46,666 shares of the bank's stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 1,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR boosted its holdings in shares of Itau Unibanco by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 40,445 shares of the bank's stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433 shares during the last quarter.

Itau Unibanco Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ITUB opened at $8.63 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.24. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52 week low of $5.93 and a 52 week high of $9.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.84, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.58.

Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The bank reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.02). Itau Unibanco had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 21.27%. The business had revenue of $9.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.41 billion. On average, analysts expect that Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Itau Unibanco Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.068 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 22nd. Itau Unibanco's dividend payout ratio is 4.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Vanzo Carlos Orestes sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.24, for a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,008,014 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,306,035.36. This trade represents a 5.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Fajerman Sergio Guillinet sold 39,477 shares of Itau Unibanco stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.53, for a total value of $376,215.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,205,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,489,768.26. This trade represents a 3.17% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 169,477 shares of company stock worth $1,528,616. Company insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ITUB has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Itau Unibanco in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Itau Unibanco from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $10.00.

Itau Unibanco Profile

Itaú Unibanco SA NYSE: ITUB is a Brazilian banking and financial services conglomerate headquartered in São Paulo. The company was formed by the merger of Banco Itaú and Unibanco in 2008 and is one of the largest private-sector banks in Brazil and among the leading banks in Latin America. Itaú Unibanco is publicly listed in Brazil and maintains an international listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

The bank offers a full range of financial products and services across retail, commercial and wholesale banking.

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