BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.02 EPS

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02, Briefing.com reports. The business had revenue of $508.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.84 million. BankUnited had a net margin of 9.19% and a return on equity of 8.38%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.70 EPS.

BankUnited Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BKU opened at $25.89 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $26.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. The company has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 1.36. BankUnited has a 52-week low of $15.83 and a 52-week high of $34.22.

BankUnited Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is a positive change from BankUnited’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.74%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 2,285 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.18, for a total transaction of $62,106.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $319,365. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BankUnited

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 1.1% in the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 48,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after buying an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 2.9% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 18,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $826,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in BankUnited by 13.9% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $217,000 after purchasing an additional 775 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its holdings in BankUnited by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 11,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in BankUnited by 9.3% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $503,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on BKU shares. Barclays started coverage on shares of BankUnited in a report on Friday, March 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of BankUnited from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of BankUnited from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of BankUnited from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of BankUnited from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.50.

BankUnited Company 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.