UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Shares Purchased by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 0.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 139,766 shares of the textile maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.75% of UniFirst worth $23,974,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its position in UniFirst by 78.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in 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. acquired a new stake in UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at about $80,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in UniFirst in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $82,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in UniFirst during the 1st quarter worth approximately $166,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UNF shares. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on UniFirst from $185.00 to $199.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of UniFirst from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of UniFirst from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. One research 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, UniFirst has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.00.

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 9,733 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.29, for a total value of $1,491,971.57. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,940,639.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other UniFirst news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 9,733 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.29, for a total value of $1,491,971.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,940,639.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael Iandoli sold 682 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.30, for a total value of $132,512.60. Following the sale, the director now owns 4,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,759.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,490 shares of company stock valued at $2,922,265 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:UNF opened at $185.84 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.13 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $182.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.17. UniFirst Co. has a twelve month low of $149.58 and a twelve month high of $197.88.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The textile maker reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88 by $0.31. UniFirst had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The business had revenue of $603.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $600.97 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.83 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.71%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.27%.

UniFirst Company Profile

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.