UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Releases FY24 Earnings Guidance

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) issued an update on its FY24 earnings guidance on Wednesday morning. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $6.80-7.16 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51. The company issued revenue guidance of $2.415-2.425 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $2.42 billion. UniFirst also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 6.800-7.160 EPS.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of UNF stock opened at $172.07 on Thursday. UniFirst has a 1 year low of $150.50 and a 1 year high of $193.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $170.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $170.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.82 and a beta of 0.82.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 3rd. The textile maker reported $2.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $593.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $589.64 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.01% and a net margin of 4.90%. The company’s revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.21 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that UniFirst will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on UNF shares. Robert W. Baird restated a neutral rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of UniFirst in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered UniFirst from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Saturday, March 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UniFirst currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $177.50.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In related news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total transaction of $399,966.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of UNF. Covestor Ltd raised its position in UniFirst by 187.4% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 273 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its position in UniFirst by 28.9% during the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 393 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in UniFirst in the first quarter valued at about $69,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in UniFirst by 16.7% in the second quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in UniFirst in the first quarter valued at about $103,000. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.