Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 2,195,287 Shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Free Report) by 32.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,515,177 shares of the bank's stock after selling 2,195,287 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.'s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $22,395,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ITUB. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,685,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Itaú Unibanco by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 48,018,726 shares of the bank's stock valued at $238,173,000 after acquiring an additional 4,151,459 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 5.4% during 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 in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC raised its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 33.0% during the fourth quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 9,269,375 shares of the bank's stock worth $45,976,000 after acquiring an additional 2,302,211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda lifted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 657.9% during the fourth quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 1,702,655 shares of the bank's stock valued at $8,445,000 after acquiring an additional 1,477,993 shares during the period.

Itaú Unibanco Trading Up 1.1 %

ITUB traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $5.53. The stock had a trading volume of 4,525,827 shares, compared to its average volume of 24,000,137. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.65. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52 week low of $4.42 and a 52 week high of $6.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $5.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.25.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.17 EPS 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%. On average, equities analysts predict that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 EPS for the current year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 an increase from Itaú Unibanco's previous dividend of $0.00. Itaú Unibanco's dividend payout ratio is 2.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Itaú Unibanco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $6.18 price target on the stock in a research report 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus 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.