UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Buy”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Sunday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on UNF. Barclays lifted their price objective on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $177.75.

UniFirst Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $164.19 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $165.75 and its 200-day moving average is $169.67. UniFirst has a 1-year low of $150.50 and a 1-year high of $187.22. The firm has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.87 and a beta of 0.83.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The textile maker reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.19). UniFirst had a net margin of 4.92% and a return on equity of 6.19%. The company had revenue of $590.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.56 million. Analysts forecast that UniFirst will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UniFirst

In related news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total value of $399,966.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of UniFirst

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in UniFirst by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 171 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in UniFirst during the fourth quarter valued at about $80,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in UniFirst during the fourth quarter worth about $82,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in UniFirst in the third quarter worth about $99,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in UniFirst by 22.1% in the third quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 707 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $115,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

About UniFirst

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.