BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Lowered to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded BankUnited from "hold" to "sell", adding to a mixed analyst picture that still averages to a "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $53.27.
• BankUnited recently missed earnings expectations, reporting $0.83 EPS versus the $0.97 consensus, while revenue also came in below estimates at $273.69 million.
• The stock was trading at $49.30, near its 52-week high of $52.11, and insiders recently sold shares, including director John N. Digiacomo and insider Jay D. Richards.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of BankUnited from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of BankUnited in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on BankUnited from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Hovde Group decreased their price objective on BankUnited from $57.00 to $53.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on BankUnited from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $53.27.

BankUnited Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BKU opened at $49.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73 and a beta of 1.17. BankUnited has a 1-year low of $34.79 and a 1-year high of $52.11. The business's fifty day moving average price is $47.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.64.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $273.69 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $284.57 million. BankUnited had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 9.11%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that BankUnited will post 4.16 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John N. Digiacomo sold 1,000 shares of BankUnited stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.97, for a total value of $45,970.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,027 shares of the company's stock, valued at $690,791.19. The trade was a 6.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jay D. Richards sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total transaction of $194,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 40,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,971,232.34. The trade was a 8.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of BankUnited

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BKU. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of BankUnited by 21.0% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,472 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in BankUnited by 20.9% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,673 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 17,213 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of BankUnited by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of BankUnited by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 19,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $746,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. 99.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BankUnited Company Profile

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.

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