Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases Shares of 41,885 BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired 41,885 shares of BankUnited, Inc. for approximately $1.44 million, representing about 0.06% of the company's total shares.
• Several institutional investors, including Vanguard Group** and JPMorgan Chase & Co., have recently increased their stakes in BankUnited, highlighting strong institutional interest.
• BankUnited announced a $0.31 quarterly dividend, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.5%, while the company reported earnings per share of $0.91, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 41,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,443,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.06% of BankUnited at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BKU. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 410 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in BankUnited by 165.5% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in BankUnited during the 4th quarter valued at $73,000. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in BankUnited during the 4th quarter valued at $216,000. Finally, U S Wealth Group LLC. acquired a new stake in BankUnited during the 4th quarter valued at $244,000. 99.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on BKU shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on BankUnited from $38.00 to $34.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of BankUnited from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of BankUnited from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. One equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, BankUnited presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $41.55.

BankUnited Price Performance

BankUnited stock traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $35.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 160,255 shares, compared to its average volume of 832,410. BankUnited, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.21 and a 52 week high of $44.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $35.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $35.67. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a PE ratio of 10.45 and a beta of 1.32.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.12. BankUnited had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 13.19%. The firm had revenue of $273.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $267.17 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 11th were issued a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 11th. BankUnited's payout ratio is 36.36%.

Insider Transactions at BankUnited

In other news, Director John N. Digiacomo sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.43, for a total transaction of $34,430.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 14,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,785.88. The trade was a 6.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Douglas J. Pauls sold 3,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 8,442 shares of company stock worth $323,184. Insiders own 1.15% of the company's stock.

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.