Alliancebernstein L.P. Reduces Stock Position in BankUnited, Inc. $BKU

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its stake in BankUnited by 10.9%, selling 354,557 shares during the 1st quarter, bringing its total ownership to 2,910,556 shares worth approximately $100.24 million.
• In contrast, Wellington Management Group LLP dramatically increased its holdings in BankUnited by 893.2%, acquiring over 1 million additional shares during the same period.
• BankUnited recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.91, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.79, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lessened its position in shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,910,556 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 354,557 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 3.87% of BankUnited worth $100,240,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 893.2% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,150,879 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,636,000 after buying an additional 1,035,002 shares during the period. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of BankUnited in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,299,000. Kodai Capital Management LP acquired a new position in BankUnited in the 1st quarter worth about $16,986,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in BankUnited in the 1st quarter worth about $16,338,000. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC raised its holdings in BankUnited by 64.9% in the 1st quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 806,468 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,775,000 after purchasing an additional 317,532 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.70% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at BankUnited

In other news, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.79, for a total value of $135,765.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 43,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,675,921.95. This trade represents a 7.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jay D. Richards sold 3,942 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.81, for a total value of $152,989.02. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 39,193 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,521,080.33. The trade was a 9.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.15% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

BankUnited Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE:BKU opened at $38.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock's fifty day moving average is $37.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.28. BankUnited, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.21 and a 52 week high of $44.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 1.29.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $273.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $267.17 million. BankUnited had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 13.19%.During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 11th were paid a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 11th. BankUnited's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Hovde Group upped their price target on BankUnited from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on BankUnited from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised BankUnited from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Barclays increased their target price on BankUnited from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of BankUnited in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.55.

BankUnited Profile

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.

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