Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Has $3.50 Million Stock Holdings in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 503,347 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 50,000 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $3,498,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 227.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 5,133 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 3,567 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Itaú Unibanco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank purchased a new position in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Natixis bought a new stake in Itaú Unibanco during the fourth quarter worth $38,000.

Itaú Unibanco Price Performance

Shares of ITUB opened at $6.05 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $6.75 and a 200 day moving average of $6.44. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 12 month low of $4.85 and a 12 month high of $7.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The bank reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.19. The firm had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.05 billion. Itaú Unibanco had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 10.48%. As a group, analysts expect that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Itaú Unibanco Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.003 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $0.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. Itaú Unibanco’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 5.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on ITUB. Bank of America upgraded Itaú Unibanco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $8.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. HSBC lowered shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th.

About Itaú Unibanco

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.