BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $43.74 and last traded at $43.1950, with a volume of 429350 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.58.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on BankUnited from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $44.00 price objective on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of BankUnited in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of BankUnited from $45.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.91.

BankUnited Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $39.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 1.34.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.11. BankUnited had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 9.18%. The company had revenue of $275.68 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $280.33 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 10th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.93%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BankUnited

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of BankUnited in the first quarter worth approximately $1,443,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of BankUnited by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 20,974 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $722,000 after acquiring an additional 1,682 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 11.8% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 17,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $610,000 after acquiring an additional 1,865 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of BankUnited by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 533,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,371,000 after purchasing an additional 2,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of BankUnited by 386.2% in the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 39,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,376,000 after purchasing an additional 31,742 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.70% of the company’s stock.

About BankUnited

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.