Itaú Unibanco Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:ITUB)

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Traders purchased 10,030 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 633% compared to the typical volume of 1,368 call options.

Itaú Unibanco Price Performance

Shares of ITUB stock traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $5.94. 10,498,010 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 25,721,004. Itaú Unibanco has a fifty-two week low of $4.86 and a fifty-two week high of $7.27. The firm has a market cap of $58.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.28. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $5.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.96.

Itaú Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The bank reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.01). Itaú Unibanco had a return on equity of 19.76% and a net margin of 12.25%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Itaú Unibanco will post 0.82 EPS 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 issued a $0.0029 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. Itaú Unibanco’s payout ratio is currently 3.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Institutional Trading of Itaú Unibanco

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Itaú Unibanco by 12,592.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 23,484,343 shares of the bank’s stock worth $156,171,000 after buying an additional 23,299,313 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Itaú Unibanco in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,685,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 6.1% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 50,587,633 shares of the bank’s stock worth $336,408,000 after buying an additional 2,886,508 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Itaú Unibanco by 5.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 50,829,515 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $338,016,000 after purchasing an additional 2,604,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its holdings in Itaú Unibanco by 38.8% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 6,367,875 shares of the bank’s stock worth $42,346,000 after buying an additional 1,779,300 shares in 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.