US Foods (NYSE:USFD) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

US Foods Holding Corp. (NYSE:USFD)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $85.22 and last traded at $85.0460, with a volume of 3611146 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $82.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on US Foods from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 7th. Wall Street Zen raised US Foods from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of US Foods from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of US Foods in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of US Foods in a report on Monday, December 29th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $88.50.

US Foods Stock Up 3.1%

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $75.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $18.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.03.

US Foods (NYSE:USFD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $10.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.18 billion. US Foods had a net margin of 1.43% and a return on equity of 17.71%. The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.85 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that US Foods Holding Corp. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at US Foods

In related news, insider Steven Guberman sold 58,632 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.00, for a total transaction of $4,221,504.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 113,410 shares in the company, valued at $8,165,520. The trade was a 34.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On US Foods

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of US Foods by 303.7% during the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 327 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of US Foods during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of US Foods by 120.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 482 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in US Foods in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, MAI Capital Management boosted its holdings in US Foods by 155.6% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 529 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.76% of the company’s stock.

About US Foods

US Foods (NYSE: USFD) is a leading foodservice distributor in the United States that supplies a wide range of products and services to professional food operators. The company provides fresh, frozen and dry food items as well as non-food restaurant supplies and kitchen equipment. Its customer base includes independent restaurants, multi-unit chains, healthcare and senior living facilities, hospitality businesses, government and educational institutions, and other foodservice operators.

Beyond commodity and branded food products, US Foods offers value-added solutions designed to help customers run their businesses.