BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02, Briefing.com reports. BankUnited had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The firm had revenue of $508.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.84 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 EPS.

BankUnited Stock Performance

NYSE:BKU opened at $25.89 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $26.79 and its 200-day moving average is $26.96. BankUnited has a 1-year low of $15.83 and a 1-year high of $34.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.16 and a beta of 1.36.

BankUnited Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This is an increase from BankUnited’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.48%. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.00%.

Insider Activity at BankUnited

In other BankUnited news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 2,285 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.18, for a total value of $62,106.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $319,365. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of BankUnited

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in shares of BankUnited in the 4th quarter valued at about $255,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in BankUnited by 102.6% in the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 2,941 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in BankUnited during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $250,000. State of Wisconsin Investment Board raised its holdings in BankUnited by 14.9% during the 2nd quarter. State of Wisconsin Investment Board now owns 11,183 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 1,452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of BankUnited in the 1st quarter worth approximately $238,000. 99.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on BKU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on BankUnited from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Barclays started coverage on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Friday, March 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $29.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of BankUnited from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Wedbush decreased their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of BankUnited from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $29.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, BankUnited currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.50.

BankUnited Company Profile

BankUnited, Inc operates as the bank holding company for BankUnited, a national banking association that provides a range of banking services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, such as checking, money market deposit, and savings accounts; certificates of deposit; and treasury, commercial payment, and cash management services.