AGBK vs ITUB: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. AGBK and ITUB share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined AGBK and ITUB exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

AGI Inc (NYSE: AGBK) is the Cayman Islands holding company for Agibank, a consumer bank founded in 1999 and headquartered in Campinas, Brazil. Its core product is consignado, or payroll-deductible credit, where loan installments are taken directly from a borrower's pension or salary before it is paid out. Most of that book is lent to retirees and pensioners of the INSS, Brazil's national social security agency, a group historically underserved by the big banks. Agibank pairs a digital app with a network of more than 1,100 physical Smart Hubs, many in smaller cities, and adds personal loans, payroll credit cards, a checking account and a new Agi+ subscription bundle. The company listed on the NYSE on February 12, 2026, selling 20 million Class A shares at $12, the low end of a range already cut from $15 to $18.

Full AGBK guide

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE: ITUB) is the largest private-sector bank in Brazil and one of the largest financial institutions in Latin America, offering retail and commercial banking, credit cards, insurance, asset management, and investment banking across Brazil and other markets. The U.S.-listed security is an American Depositary Receipt tied to the Brazil-listed preferred shares (ITUB4), so its dollar value moves with both the underlying share price and the Brazilian real. Itau, together with Bradesco and Santander Brasil, forms the private-bank core of a sector where these three plus the state-owned banks control the bulk of system assets.

Full ITUB guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• AGBK drivers: INSS payroll lending share gains; Cross-selling and the Agi+ subscription.
• ITUB drivers: High and durable profitability; Interest-rate and credit cycle.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Regulatory concentration is the defining risk. For ITUB, the largest risks are macro and currency: ITUB is an ADR whose dollar value depends on the Brazilian real, so a weakening real can wipe out local-currency gains for U.S.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick AGBK if you believe its drivers more; ITUB if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the AGBK and ITUB guides.

AGBK. On trailing numbers AGBK trades near ~8x earnings and ~1.4x book value, cheap for a lender that grew revenue ~47% in 2025 and still earns a return on equity above 20%. The discount reflects how much of that profit sits on one regulated channel, INSS payroll loans, and how fast returns fell, from ~36% ROE in 2025 to ~21.6% trailing. Brazilian peers that lend to the same retirees, such as Banco Pan or the payroll arms of the large banks, also trade at low multiples. Currency conversions use roughly R$5.4 per dollar and move with the real.

ITUB. At about $9.46 on October 16, 2026, Itau trades near 12 times trailing and 10 times forward earnings and about 2.4 times book, a discount to large U.S. banks on earnings despite a much higher return on equity, because of Brazilian country and currency risk. The multiple has risen with a 42% one-year price gain, and the ADR now sits above the analyst mean target. Reported figures are in Brazilian reais, so the dollar ADR value also depends on the BRL/USD exchange rate; Q3 results are due November 3, 2026.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): AGBK shows revenue (ttm) ~R$11.9 billion (~US$2.2 billion); FY2025 ~R$10.7B, Q2 2026 ~R$3.2B, net income (ttm) ~R$0.81 billion (~US$150 million); H1 2026 ~R$387M vs ~R$620M in H1 2025, loan portfolio ~R$37.1 billion at June 30, 2026, up ~21% YoY, shareholders' equity ~R$4.8 billion (~US$0.9 billion); ROE (LTM) ~21.6%; ITUB shows revenue (ttm) ~R$144B (Q2 2026 +17.5% YoY), net income (ttm) ~R$46.8B, q2 2026 net income ~R$12.2B, operating / profit margin ~39% / ~33%.

AGBK and ITUB are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined AGBK and ITUB exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.