William Blair Investment Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB)

William Blair Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) by 67.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 14,098,139 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 28,955,558 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.14% of Itaú Unibanco worth $69,922,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ITUB. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the 4th quarter valued at about $57,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 4,000.3% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 12,260 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11,961 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $68,000. Raymond James Trust N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco during the 3rd quarter valued at about $81,000. Finally, Fielder Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 17,106 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,001 shares in the last quarter.

Itaú Unibanco Stock Up 4.6 %

Shares of Itaú Unibanco stock opened at $6.27 on Tuesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $61.40 billion, a PE ratio of 8.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. has a 52-week low of $4.86 and a 52-week high of $7.03. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $5.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.86.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last issued 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 19.46% and a net margin of 12.25%. On average, analysts anticipate that Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. will post 0.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th were issued a $0.058 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Itaú Unibanco’s previous dividend of $0.00. Itaú Unibanco’s payout ratio is 2.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ITUB shares. UBS Group raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Itaú Unibanco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Itaú Unibanco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $6.80 price objective on the stock in a research note 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 presently 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.