Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) Stock Price

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) had its target price dropped by stock analysts at Barclays from $44.00 to $38.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s target price points to a potential upside of 17.39% from the company’s current price.

BKU has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on BankUnited from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded BankUnited from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of BankUnited from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Compass Point boosted their price target on BankUnited from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised BankUnited from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $41.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.18.

BankUnited Stock Performance

Shares of BKU stock opened at $32.37 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.86. BankUnited has a 52 week low of $24.34 and a 52 week high of $44.45. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $35.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.67.

BankUnited (NYSE:BKU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that BankUnited will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Kevin A. Malcolm sold 3,234 shares of BankUnited stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.18, for a total transaction of $113,772.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $430,955. The trade was a 20.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sanjiv Sobti bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $32.83 per share, with a total value of $32,830.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,782 shares in the company, valued at $715,103.06. This trade represents a 4.81 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BankUnited

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of BankUnited by 3,430.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 178,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,156,000 after purchasing an additional 173,681 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in BankUnited by 165.5% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in BankUnited in the 4th quarter worth approximately $605,000. GTS Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BankUnited in the fourth quarter worth $261,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of BankUnited by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 188,016 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,177,000 after buying an additional 31,416 shares during the last quarter. 99.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.