Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Stake in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU - Free Report) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 372,237 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 9,750 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.49% of BankUnited worth $12,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 42.3% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,380 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 7,802 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 8,230 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 555 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 15,163 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of BankUnited by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,174 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 932 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.70% of the company's stock.

BankUnited Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BKU traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $36.98. 888,314 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 806,227. The company's 50-day moving average is $35.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 1.29. BankUnited, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.21 and a 1 year high of $44.45.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $255.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $264.35 million. BankUnited had a net margin of 12.26% and a return on equity of 8.66%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 11th will be given a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 11th. BankUnited's dividend payout ratio is 38.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Leslie Lunak sold 22,776 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.56, for a total transaction of $764,362.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,899 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,010,210.44. This represents a 27.55% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John N. Digiacomo sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.43, for a total transaction of $34,430.00. Following the sale, the director 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. 1.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BKU. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of BankUnited from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of BankUnited in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of BankUnited from $50.00 to $42.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Hovde Group dropped their target price on shares of BankUnited from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of BankUnited from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BankUnited currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $40.58.

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.