BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Stock Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $39.73 and traded as high as $46.35. BankUnited shares last traded at $45.7170, with a volume of 1,012,406 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on BKU. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of BankUnited from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Hovde Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 price target on shares of BankUnited in a report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BankUnited has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.50.

BankUnited Trading Down 0.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.79 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.84.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.11. BankUnited had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 9.18%. The firm had revenue of $275.68 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $280.33 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.81 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 9th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.93%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BankUnited

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of BankUnited during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in BankUnited during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Quarry LP boosted its stake in BankUnited by 158.2% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its holdings in BankUnited by 32.3% in the second quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of BankUnited by 202.0% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 814 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.70% of the company’s stock.

About BankUnited

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.