Quantinno Capital Management LP Increases Stake in UniFirst Corporation $UNF

Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 65.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,589 shares of the textile maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,013 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $1,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in UNF. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of UniFirst by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 865,014 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $166,861,000 after acquiring an additional 75,524 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in UniFirst by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,418 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $151,895,000 after purchasing an additional 14,751 shares during the period. Engine Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 640.5% in the 4th quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 459,871 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $88,709,000 after purchasing an additional 397,772 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in UniFirst by 46.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 451,194 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $87,035,000 after purchasing an additional 143,853 shares during the period. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in UniFirst by 164.2% during the 4th quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 367,786 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $70,946,000 after purchasing an additional 228,586 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on UNF shares. UBS Group set a $262.00 price target on UniFirst in a report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered UniFirst from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $246.67.

UniFirst Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $291.86 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.03 and a beta of 0.63. UniFirst Corporation has a 52 week low of $147.66 and a 52 week high of $306.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $277.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $258.61.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The textile maker reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.84). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.44% and a net margin of 4.65%.The company had revenue of $634.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $627.66 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.365 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.03%.

UniFirst Company Profile

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a leading provider of customized uniform rental and facility service programs in North America and Europe. The company specializes in the rental, laundering and maintenance of workwear, corporate apparel and protective garments for a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, hospitality, healthcare and food processing. UniFirst also offers a suite of facility service products such as entrance mats, restroom supplies, wipers, mops and hygienic services designed to help customers maintain clean and safe environments.

In addition to its core uniform rental business, UniFirst has expanded its product portfolio to include safety and first-responder gear, flame-resistant clothing, high-visibility apparel and personal protective equipment (PPE).