Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Itau Unibanco shares hit a new 52-week high of $10.17, rising sharply from the previous close of $8.59 on heavy trading volume.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $10.00; JPMorgan recently raised its target to $10.00.
• The bank slightly missed quarterly expectations, reporting $0.21 in EPS versus $0.22 expected and revenue of $9.27 billion versus $9.29 billion forecast.

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday. The company traded as high as $10.17 and last traded at $10.0350, with a volume of 21495866 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $8.59.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ITUB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Itau Unibanco from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Itau Unibanco from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $10.00.

Itau Unibanco Price Performance

The company's 50 day moving average price is $8.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $110.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.50.

Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The bank reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.29 billion. Itau Unibanco had a net margin of 26.41% and a return on equity of 21.40%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Itau Unibanco

In related news, insider Vanzo Orestes sold 74,643 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.38, for a total transaction of $625,508.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 933,371 shares in the company, valued at $7,821,648.98. This represents a 7.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Itau Unibanco

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ITUB. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Itau Unibanco in the 1st quarter valued at $59,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Itau Unibanco by 16.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,441 shares of the bank's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Itau Unibanco during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Itau Unibanco in the first quarter valued at $89,000. Finally, Flatrock Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Itau Unibanco in the first quarter valued at $115,000.

About Itau Unibanco

Itaú Unibanco Holding SA is a Brazil-based financial services company and one of the largest private-sector banking groups in Latin America. Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol ITUB, while its principal operations are based in Brazil.

The company provides a broad range of banking and financial products for individuals, businesses and institutional clients. Its services include checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial lending, credit and debit cards, payments, insurance, investment products, wealth management, foreign exchange and investment banking.

Itaú Unibanco was created in 2008 through the merger of Banco Itaú and Unibanco.

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