UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Price Target Increased to $175.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) had its price objective hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $170.00 to $175.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the textile maker’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on UNF. StockNews.com upgraded UniFirst from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on UniFirst from $185.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, UniFirst currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $186.00.

UniFirst Price Performance

UNF opened at $171.50 on Thursday. UniFirst has a 1 year low of $149.58 and a 1 year high of $187.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $160.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $167.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a PE ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 0.85.

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

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.73, for a total value of $1,746,030.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 87,558 shares in the company, valued at $13,898,081.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other UniFirst news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.73, for a total value of $1,746,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 87,558 shares in the company, valued at $13,898,081.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Michael A. Croatti sold 1,800 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,747 shares in the company, valued at approximately $971,243. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,033 shares of company stock worth $4,398,882. 0.74% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UniFirst

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of UNF. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 171 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of UniFirst by 69.7% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 414 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new position in UniFirst in the 4th quarter worth approximately $80,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in UniFirst in the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in UniFirst during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $99,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.