Michael A. Croatti Sells 1,800 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Stock

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) VP Michael A. Croatti sold 1,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total value of $304,200.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $971,243. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

UniFirst Trading Down 2.6 %

NYSE UNF opened at $171.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a PE ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 0.85. UniFirst Co. has a 12 month low of $149.58 and a 12 month high of $187.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $160.58 and a 200-day moving average of $167.25.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The textile maker reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.19). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.19% and a net margin of 4.92%. The business had revenue of $590.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.56 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.27%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UniFirst

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in UNF. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 15.6% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,156 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,166,000 after acquiring an additional 968 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new stake in shares of UniFirst during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $279,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 114,520 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $18,668,000 after acquiring an additional 34,279 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in UniFirst by 2.9% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 106,946 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $17,433,000 after acquiring an additional 3,023 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in UniFirst by 22.1% during the third quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 707 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNF has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on UniFirst from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays boosted their target price on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on UniFirst from $185.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on UniFirst from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $186.00.

About UniFirst

UniFirst Corporation provides workplace uniforms and protective work wear clothing in the United States, Europe, and Canada. The company operates through U.S. and Canadian Rental and Cleaning, Manufacturing, Specialty Garments Rental and Cleaning, and First Aid segments. It designs, manufactures, personalizes, rents, cleans, delivers, and sells a range of uniforms and protective clothing, including shirts, pants, jackets, coveralls, lab coats, smocks, and aprons; and specialized protective wear, such as flame resistant and high visibility garments.