Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. Acquires New Shares in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 486,959 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $17,745,000. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.65% of BankUnited at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in BankUnited by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 632,632 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,517,000 after acquiring an additional 48,059 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in BankUnited in the 2nd quarter worth about $799,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in BankUnited in the 3rd quarter worth about $443,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in BankUnited in the 2nd quarter worth about $515,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in BankUnited by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 41,438 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,213,000 after acquiring an additional 2,778 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.70% of the company's stock.

BankUnited Price Performance

Shares of BKU remained flat at $42.07 during mid-day trading on Monday. The stock had a trading volume of 208,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,850. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. BankUnited, Inc. has a 52-week low of $24.34 and a 52-week high of $44.45. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.21 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $34.61.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $515.24 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.65 million. BankUnited had a return on equity of 8.09% and a net margin of 9.06%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.63 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 2.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 11th were issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 11th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. BankUnited's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jay D. Richards sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.18, for a total value of $102,950.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,687 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,428,410.66. This represents a 6.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Thomas M. Cornish sold 10,778 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.11, for a total value of $421,527.58. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 100,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,911,000. This trade represents a 9.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BKU shares. Wedbush lifted their price objective on BankUnited from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup cut their target price on BankUnited from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Barclays raised their target price on BankUnited from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded BankUnited from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $38.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $37.00 target price on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BankUnited currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $38.70.

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.