BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $51.6364.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on BKU shares. Citigroup cut their price target on BankUnited from $45.00 to $42.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of BankUnited in a report on Monday, August 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $54.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $51.00 to $49.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded BankUnited from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other BankUnited news, insider Jay D. Richards sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $194,680.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 40,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,971,232.34. This represents a 8.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.90, for a total transaction of $143,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 42,472 shares in the company, valued at $2,034,408.80. This trade represents a 6.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BKU. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in BankUnited during the second quarter worth $26,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new position in BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of BankUnited in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of BankUnited in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of BankUnited by 158.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.70% of the company’s stock.

BankUnited Price Performance

BKU stock opened at $46.48 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.93. BankUnited has a 12-month low of $35.10 and a 12-month high of $52.11.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.00 by ($0.03). BankUnited had a return on equity of 9.13% and a net margin of 14.76%.The business had revenue of $284.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $290.33 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that BankUnited will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.16%.

BankUnited Company Profile

BankUnited, Inc is a bank holding company based in Miami Lakes, Florida, operating through its subsidiary BankUnited, National Association. The company provides a broad range of commercial banking products and services, including deposit accounts, commercial lending and treasury management. It serves middle-market and small-business clients, offering tailored financing solutions across a variety of industry sectors.

The bank’s lending portfolio includes commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate loans and construction financing, as well as residential mortgage lending.