Vestcor Inc Reduces Stock Position in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc reduced its holdings in BankUnited, Inc. by 72.8%, now owning 4,729 shares valued at $163,000.
• BankUnited recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.31 per share, resulting in an annualized payout of $1.24 and a dividend yield of 3.5%.
• Several analysts have upgraded their ratings for BankUnited, with Barclays raising their price target to $43.00 and the consensus rating being "Hold."

Vestcor Inc cut its holdings in shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU - Free Report) by 72.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,729 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,687 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in BankUnited were worth $163,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 8.8% during the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,250,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $43,084,000 after acquiring an additional 101,170 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in BankUnited by 36.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,059,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,496,000 after buying an additional 285,092 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in BankUnited in the 4th quarter valued at $34,525,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in BankUnited by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 875,450 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,416,000 after buying an additional 127,159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in BankUnited in the 4th quarter valued at $30,499,000. 99.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Jay D. Richards sold 3,942 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.81, for a total transaction of $152,989.02. Following the sale, the insider owned 39,193 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,521,080.33. This trade represents a 9.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John N. Digiacomo sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.43, for a total value of $34,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,516 shares in the company, valued at $499,785.88. This represents a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 8,442 shares of company stock worth $323,184 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.15% of the company's stock.

BankUnited Stock Performance

Shares of BKU traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $35.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 748,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 835,013. BankUnited, Inc. has a 1-year low of $28.21 and a 1-year high of $44.45. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.43 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $273.93 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $267.17 million. BankUnited had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 13.19%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 11th were paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 11th. BankUnited's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on BKU shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of BankUnited from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on BankUnited from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on BankUnited from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price target on BankUnited from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, BankUnited currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus 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.