Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) Upgraded by HSBC to Buy Rating

HSBC upgraded shares of Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $6.80 price objective on the bank’s stock.

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Itaú Unibanco from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.27.

Itaú Unibanco Stock Performance

Shares of ITUB stock opened at $5.07 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $5.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.03. 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 has a 12 month low of $4.86 and a 12 month high of $7.27.

Itaú Unibanco Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a $0.0029 dividend. This is a positive change from Itaú Unibanco’s previous dividend of $0.00. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. Itaú Unibanco’s dividend payout ratio is 2.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Itaú Unibanco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 12,592.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,484,343 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $156,171,000 after purchasing an additional 23,299,313 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Itaú Unibanco during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,685,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 200.4% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 7,679,311 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,847,000 after purchasing an additional 5,122,752 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Itaú Unibanco by 77.5% in the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 7,114,571 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $41,549,000 after buying an additional 3,106,130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Itaú Unibanco by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 50,587,633 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $336,408,000 after buying an additional 2,886,508 shares during the last quarter.

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.