Lazard Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in BankUnited, Inc. $BKU

Lazard Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) by 48.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 92,520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 88,439 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in BankUnited were worth $4,178,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BKU. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in BankUnited by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,658,844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $210,390,000 after acquiring an additional 26,292 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of BankUnited by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,437,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $197,792,000 after acquiring an additional 149,450 shares in the last quarter. HoldCo Asset Management LP raised its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 277.3% in the fourth quarter. HoldCo Asset Management LP now owns 3,535,282 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $157,568,000 after purchasing an additional 2,598,382 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of BankUnited by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,155,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $140,654,000 after purchasing an additional 84,971 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new position in shares of BankUnited during the fourth quarter valued at about $73,655,000. 99.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BKU has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of BankUnited in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of BankUnited in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of BankUnited in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded BankUnited from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Hovde Group reduced their target price on BankUnited from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.00.

BankUnited Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BKU opened at $46.64 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.78 and a beta of 1.17. The company’s 50-day moving average is $47.71 and its 200 day moving average is $47.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82. BankUnited, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $34.79 and a fifty-two week high of $52.11.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $284.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $290.33 million. BankUnited had a return on equity of 9.13% and a net margin of 14.76%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.91 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that BankUnited, Inc. will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

BankUnited Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.33 per share. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.16%.

Insider Activity at BankUnited

In related news, insider Jay D. Richards sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.67, for a total value of $194,680.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 40,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,971,232.34. This represents a 8.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John N. Digiacomo sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.97, for a total value of $45,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,027 shares in the company, valued at approximately $690,791.19. The trade was a 6.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

About BankUnited

BankUnited, Inc is a bank holding company based in Miami Lakes, Florida, operating through its subsidiary BankUnited, National Association. The company provides a broad range of commercial banking products and services, including deposit accounts, commercial lending and treasury management. It serves middle-market and small-business clients, offering tailored financing solutions across a variety of industry sectors.

The bank’s lending portfolio includes commercial and industrial loans, commercial real estate loans and construction financing, as well as residential mortgage lending.