CL King Upgrades United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) to “Buy”

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) was upgraded by equities research analysts at CL King from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $33.00 price objective on the stock. CL King’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 24.03% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on UNFI. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.50.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

UNFI opened at $26.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.95 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s 50 day moving average is $29.63 and its 200 day moving average is $24.05. United Natural Foods has a 12-month low of $8.58 and a 12-month high of $34.76.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.96 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.30% and a positive return on equity of 1.27%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.07 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that United Natural Foods will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in United Natural Foods by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter valued at $47,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in United Natural Foods by 796.2% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 1,672 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

About United Natural Foods

United Natural Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products.