AlphaQuest LLC Acquires 59,215 Shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) by 261.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 81,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 59,215 shares during the quarter. BankUnited makes up about 0.4% of AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in BankUnited were worth $3,124,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 182.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 847 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in BankUnited by 270.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 1,407 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth about $113,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of BankUnited by 87.8% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of BankUnited by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $193,000 after purchasing an additional 426 shares during the period. 99.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at BankUnited

In other news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 3,234 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.18, for a total transaction of $113,772.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $430,955. This trade represents a 20.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BKU has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on BankUnited from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of BankUnited from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of BankUnited from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of BankUnited from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BankUnited presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.40.

BankUnited Stock Down 2.6 %

BankUnited stock opened at $32.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $38.96 and its 200-day moving average is $38.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a PE ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 1.40. BankUnited, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $24.34 and a fifty-two week high of $44.45.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.19. BankUnited had a return on equity of 8.48% and a net margin of 11.48%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.66%.

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.