GAMMA Investing LLC Buys New Holdings in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,532 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $147,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in BankUnited by 106.4% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in BankUnited by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in BankUnited by 29.4% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 13,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 3,003 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in BankUnited by 20.9% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 16,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 2,834 shares during the period. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in BankUnited in the 3rd quarter valued at about $387,000. 99.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BankUnited Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BKU opened at $27.26 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 1.36. BankUnited, Inc. has a 1 year low of $15.83 and a 1 year high of $34.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $508.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.84 million. BankUnited had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 8.06%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that BankUnited, Inc. will post 2.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. This is a boost from BankUnited’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.26%. BankUnited’s payout ratio is currently 50.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 2,285 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.18, for a total value of $62,106.30. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $319,365. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on BKU shares. StockNews.com cut shares of BankUnited from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of BankUnited from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of BankUnited from $33.00 to $31.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Wedbush lowered their target price on shares of BankUnited from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of BankUnited from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $29.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.50.

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.