Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP Buys 1,873 Shares of BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU)

Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP raised its position in BankUnited, Inc. (NYSE:BKU) by 12.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,524 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,873 shares during the period. Advantage Alpha Capital Partners LP’s holdings in BankUnited were worth $631,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BKU. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC bought a new position in BankUnited in the third quarter valued at about $443,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of BankUnited by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 362,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,836,000 after purchasing an additional 10,064 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BankUnited during the 4th quarter worth approximately $766,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of BankUnited by 462.0% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 27,955 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,067,000 after buying an additional 22,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in BankUnited by 211.5% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 59,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after buying an additional 40,461 shares during the period. 99.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

BankUnited Trading Up 3.2 %

BKU opened at $35.78 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $38.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.62 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. BankUnited, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.34 and a 12 month high of $44.45.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the company earned $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that BankUnited, Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

BankUnited Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. BankUnited’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of BankUnited from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on BankUnited from $38.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays reduced their target price on BankUnited from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Compass Point boosted their target price on BankUnited from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of BankUnited from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.18.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 3,234 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.18, for a total value of $113,772.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $430,955. This trade represents a 20.89 % 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 hyperlink. Also, Director Sanjiv Sobti purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $32.83 per share, for a total transaction of $32,830.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $715,103.06. This represents a 4.81 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

BankUnited Company Profile

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.