Contrasting Danske Bank (OTCMKTS:DNKEY) and Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB)

Danske Bank (OTCMKTS:DNKEY) and Itau Unibanco (NYSE:ITUB) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and dividends.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Danske Bank and Itau Unibanco”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Danske Bank	$8.61 billion	4.87	$3.49 billion	$2.11	11.91
Itau Unibanco	$30.04 billion	3.25	$8.03 billion	$0.70	12.61

Itau Unibanco has higher revenue and earnings than Danske Bank. Danske Bank is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Itau Unibanco, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Danske Bank has a beta of 0.61, meaning that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Itau Unibanco has a beta of 0.65, meaning that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Danske Bank and Itau Unibanco’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Danske Bank	40.52%	13.25%	0.62%
Itau Unibanco	20.64%	20.83%	1.55%

Dividends

Danske Bank pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Itau Unibanco pays an annual dividend of $0.03 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Danske Bank pays out 58.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Itau Unibanco pays out 4.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Danske Bank and Itau Unibanco, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Danske Bank	0	2	4	0	2.67
Itau Unibanco	0	2	2	0	2.50

Itau Unibanco has a consensus target price of $9.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.98%. Given Itau Unibanco’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Itau Unibanco is more favorable than Danske Bank.

Summary

Itau Unibanco beats Danske Bank on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Danske Bank

Danske Bank A/S provides various banking products and services to corporate, institutional, and international clients. The company offers insurance and pension products, mortgage finance and real-estate brokerage services, asset management and trading services in fixed income products, foreign exchange services, and equities. It also provides advisory services to personal and private banking customers; and business advisory services, including acquisition, change of ownership, strategic development, or international expansion. In addition, the company offers financing, risk management, investment, and financial advisory services for large corporates and institutions; healthcare solutions; and online and mobile banking services. It has operations in Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company was founded in 1871 and is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark.

About Itau Unibanco

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. 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. The company also provides property and casualty insurance products covering loss, damage, or liabilities for assets or persons, as well as life insurance products covering death and personal accident. It serves retail customers, account and non-account holders, individuals and legal entities, high income clients, microenterprises, and small companies, as well as middle-market companies and high net worth clients. The company was formerly known as Itaú Unibanco Banco Múltiplo S.A. and changed its name to Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. in April 2009. The company was incorporated in 1924 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil. Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. operates as a subsidiary of IUPAR – Itaú Unibanco Participações S.A.