In the view of Larissa Quaresma, an analyst at Empiricus Research, there is a 'big bank' that can deliver much more than the Brazilian holding company; see which one-(Image: Itaúsa)
A Itausa (ITSA4) may record an increase in dividend yield if the proceeds paid by the Itau Unibanco (ITUB4) increase – since there is also this potential –, said BTG Pactual this week. The dividend yield of the holding reached 8.6% in the first half of this year.
The comment was made after a meeting between the bank and company executives. “Although we do not officially cover the shares, we left the meeting more confident that the holding discount (currently at 21%) has a good chance of narrowing in the coming months,” said Eduardo Rosman and the team that signed the report.
Itaúsa has a market value of R$115 billion, while its stake in Itaú alone totals around R$134 billion. “This implies a negative assessment of R$19 billion for the rest of its portfolio (Alpargatas, Dexco, Aegea, Copa Energia, NTS and CCR), which seems unfair given their quality and relevance,” they wrote.
Itaúsa and 'fiscal inefficiency'
According to analysts, CFO Priscila Grecco noted that there is a tax inefficiency due to PIS/Cofins taxes levied on income received from Itaú (in the form of JCP).
She stated, according to BTG, that the fair holding discount should be “only” 7 to 8%, reflecting only this tax inefficiency plus the general and administrative costs of maintaining the holding company’s operations.
“In theory, if the tax reform is approved as written, this tax inefficiency would end in 2027 (immediately, without any gradual implementation), with tax exemption on JCP received,” the analysts wrote.
“As such, the CFO believes that this discount may diminish as the market begins to perceive the benefits of tax reform, particularly with the changes to VAT.”