Fmr LLC Purchases 58 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Fmr LLC boosted its position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,936 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the quarter. Fmr LLC’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 19.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,630 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 1.3% in the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 7,600 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,304,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 2.9% in the second quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $481,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in UniFirst by 22.2% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,862 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $491,000 after buying an additional 519 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in UniFirst during the 2nd quarter worth $92,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of UNF stock opened at $177.27 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $192.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $183.93. The company has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.81 and a beta of 0.84. UniFirst Co. has a twelve month low of $149.58 and a twelve month high of $208.20.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. This is a boost from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is 18.02%.

Insider Activity

In other UniFirst news, major shareholder The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 sold 9,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.97, for a total value of $1,814,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 17,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,320,968.30. This represents a 35.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total value of $619,079.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 22,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,357,105.84. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,294 shares of company stock worth $2,546,632. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.25.

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.