UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $235.00 to $194.00. The stock had previously closed at $197.57, but opened at $171.50. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. UniFirst shares last traded at $172.25, with a volume of 95,993 shares trading hands.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of UniFirst stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total value of $274,024.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,361,682.25. This trade represents a 16.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of UniFirst

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in UniFirst during the fourth quarter worth about $31,133,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in UniFirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $24,576,000. Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in UniFirst during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $10,270,000. Ulysses Management LLC bought a new position in UniFirst in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,318,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in UniFirst by 148.4% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 76,742 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $13,130,000 after buying an additional 45,850 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UniFirst Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.65 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $213.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $198.98.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $604.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $606.60 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 6.00%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.26 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.90%.

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.