BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $46.97 and last traded at $46.7950, with a volume of 176707 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $45.20.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on BKU. Jefferies Financial Group raised BankUnited from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $55.00 in a report on Monday, December 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of BankUnited in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Hovde Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 price target on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.00.

BankUnited Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $43.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 1.30.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.95 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $280.33 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.81 earnings per share. BankUnited’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BankUnited

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