By Brazil Stock Guide – Itaú Unibanco Holding SA (NYSE: ITUB; B3: ITUB4) said first-quarter recurring managerial profit rose 10.4% from a year earlier to R$12.3 billion, as Brazil’s biggest private-sector lender kept profitability near the top of the local banking industry and maintained its 2026 guidance.
The São Paulo-based bank reported a recurring managerial return on equity of 24.8%, up 2.3 percentage points from the same period a year earlier. In Brazil, ROE reached 26.4%, supported by resilient revenue, lower quarterly operating expenses and stable delinquency indicators.
Recurring profit was almost flat from the fourth quarter, slipping 0.3%. Itaú said the result would have been R$12.7 billion excluding the effect of an advance dividend distribution made at the end of 2025.
The credit portfolio stood at R$1.483 trillion at the end of March, up 7.2% from a year earlier and down 0.5% from December. Excluding foreign-exchange variation, the loan book expanded 9% year on year and 1.2% quarter on quarter.
In Brazil, Itaú’s credit portfolio reached R$1.237 trillion, a 7.8% increase from March 2025. Loans to individuals rose 6.8%, while credit to micro, small and medium-sized companies advanced 10.9%. Large-company lending grew 6.9% over the same period.
Credit quality remained broadly steady. Itaú’s consolidated nonperforming loan ratio over 90 days was 1.9% in March, unchanged from December and from a year earlier. In Brazil, the NPL ratio was 2.1%, also stable from the previous quarter.
The cost of credit totaled R$10 billion in the quarter, up 4.5% from a year earlier and 2.5% from the fourth quarter. Expected-loss expenses reached R$10.2 billion, while recoveries of written-off loans totaled R$1.24 billion.
Financial margin with clients was R$31.5 billion, up 4.5% from the first quarter of 2025 and down 0.7% from the previous quarter. Financial margin with the market was R$820 million, 37.4% higher than in the fourth quarter but 11.2% below the year-earlier period.
Service revenue and insurance results totaled R$14 billion, a 5.3% annual increase. Service revenue alone rose 2.4% from a year earlier to R$11 billion, while insurance, pension and capitalization results increased 17.2% to R$3 billion.
Non-interest expenses were R$16.2 billion, up 4.8% year on year but down 5% from the fourth quarter. Itaú’s consolidated efficiency ratio ended the quarter at 37.1%, while the Brazil efficiency ratio was 34.9%.
Capital levels remained solid. Itaú reported a common equity tier 1 ratio of 12%, up 0.1 percentage point from December and from March 2025. Its Tier 1 capital ratio stood at 13.4%.
The lender kept its 2026 outlook unchanged. Itaú expects total credit portfolio growth of 5.5% to 9.5%, Brazil credit growth of 6.5% to 10.5%, financial margin with clients growth of 5% to 9%, and non-interest expense growth of 5% to 9%.
The bank also maintained its forecast for cost of credit between R$38.5 billion and R$43.5 billion, financial margin with the market between R$2.5 billion and R$5.5 billion, and an effective tax rate between 29.5% and 32.5%.