Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Buys 27,318 Shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,027,679 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 27,318 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Itaú Unibanco were worth $5,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ITUB. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 33.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 228,293 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,333,000 after purchasing an additional 57,188 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $785,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Itaú Unibanco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $68,000. First Affirmative Financial Network grew its position in Itaú Unibanco by 85.0% during the 3rd quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 24,120 shares of the bank’s stock worth $160,000 after acquiring an additional 11,080 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning grew its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 33.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 14,941 shares of the bank’s stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 3,753 shares during the last quarter.

Itaú Unibanco Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ITUB opened at $5.85 on Friday. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 1 year low of $4.86 and a 1 year high of $7.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.49, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s 50-day moving average is $5.31 and its 200 day moving average is $5.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.75.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.01). Itaú Unibanco had a return on equity of 19.72% and a net margin of 12.33%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Itaú Unibanco Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.0029 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Itaú Unibanco’s dividend payout ratio is currently 3.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ITUB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Itaú Unibanco from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Hsbc Global Res raised Itaú Unibanco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. HSBC raised Itaú Unibanco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.80 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Itaú Unibanco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Itaú Unibanco currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.90.

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.