BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,800,000 shares, an increase of 9.5% from the March 31st total of 3,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 882,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days. Approximately 5.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

BankUnited Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BKU opened at $27.38 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.27. BankUnited has a 52 week low of $15.83 and a 52 week high of $34.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 1.36.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $508.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.84 million. BankUnited had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 8.71%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.70 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that BankUnited will post 2.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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 given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is a boost from BankUnited’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.24%. BankUnited’s payout ratio is 50.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 2,285 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.18, for a total value of $62,106.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $319,365. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BankUnited

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of BankUnited by 106.4% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,879 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth about $147,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in BankUnited by 16.4% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,434 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of BankUnited in the 4th quarter valued at about $238,000. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of BankUnited by 214,050.0% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 8,562 shares during the period. 99.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BKU has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on BankUnited from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 29th. 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 research note on Thursday, April 18th. UBS Group cut BankUnited from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $29.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 8th. StockNews.com upgraded BankUnited from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price target 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average 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.