ITUB vs. NU: Itaú Unibanco vs. Nu Holdings Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) and Nu Holdings (NU) are both classified in the Diversified Banks sub-industry within the broader Banks industry, placing them in the closest GICS peer bucket.

Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) has more than two decades of public-market history since February 25, 2002, whereas Nu Holdings (NU) listed on December 9, 2021 and has a much shorter record to draw on.

Nu Holdings (NU) trades as ordinary local shares, while Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) trades as an ADR — compare with FX exposure, depositary-program fees, and dividend-withholding-tax differences in mind.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Both Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 20.96% and Nu Holdings (NU) at 31.63% turn shareholders’ equity into profit at rates above their industry benchmark ranges for ROE. That is a strong capital-efficiency signal, though leverage and the equity base still matter.

Nu Holdings (NU) at 42.73% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 32.46%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) in Banks and Nu Holdings (NU) in Banks, funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Growth

Nu Holdings (NU) at 28.51% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 4.21% is in the bottom quartile, showing a clear gap in revenue momentum.

Nu Holdings (NU) at 44.92% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 9.21% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for NU.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) in Banks and Nu Holdings (NU) in Banks both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) in Banks and Nu Holdings (NU) in Banks run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Nu Holdings (NU) pays no dividend (yield 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) reports a yield of 40.54%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Nu Holdings (NU) pays no dividend (payout 0.00%) — it may be reinvesting, using buybacks, or simply not returning cash through dividends. Meanwhile Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) reports a payout of 70.75%, ranking against industry peers normally.

Dividend Metrics

Valuation

Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 9.12 sits in the cheaper P/E ratio quartile, while Nu Holdings (NU) at 16.48 sits in the richer quartile — a clear split in what investors pay for each dollar of trailing earnings.

P/S ratio is set aside for both Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) in Banks and Nu Holdings (NU) in Banks: without a conventional revenue line, pricing per dollar of sales isn’t meaningful, and book- or earnings-based multiples make the better comparison.

Both look rich against book: Itaú Unibanco (ITUB) at 1.79 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Nu Holdings (NU) at 4.39 prices even higher, above its industry range.

Valuation Metrics