BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Price Target Raised to $55.00

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) had its price target boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $50.00 to $55.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on BKU. Raymond James Financial set a $55.00 price target on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of BankUnited from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Hovde Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of BankUnited from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on BankUnited from $47.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.00.

BankUnited Stock Performance

NYSE BKU opened at $45.37 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.26. BankUnited has a twelve month low of $28.21 and a twelve month high of $52.11.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.09. BankUnited had a net margin of 14.14% and a return on equity of 9.09%. The firm had revenue of $260.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $279.76 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that BankUnited will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

BankUnited Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This is a boost from BankUnited’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Sanjiv Sobti sold 5,000 shares of BankUnited stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.88, for a total value of $254,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 18,816 shares in the company, valued at $957,358.08. The trade was a 20.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jay D. Richards sold 3,506 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.83, for a total transaction of $174,703.98. Following the transaction, the insider owned 35,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,778,283.21. This trade represents a 8.95% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,953 shares of company stock worth $591,492. Company insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BankUnited

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of BankUnited during the first quarter worth $28,000. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in BankUnited during the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 158.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. 99.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.