UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $177.75.

UniFirst Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of UNF opened at $162.56 on Tuesday. UniFirst has a 12 month low of $150.50 and a 12 month high of $187.22. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $164.67 and its 200-day moving average is $169.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.03 billion, a PE ratio of 26.61 and a beta of 0.83.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The textile maker reported $1.22 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.19). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.19% and a net margin of 4.92%. The business had revenue of $590.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.56 million. Equities research analysts predict that UniFirst will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.60%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On UniFirst

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in UniFirst by 4.8% during the third quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,457 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its stake in UniFirst by 4.1% during the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 2,160 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its stake in UniFirst by 4.8% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,211 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $383,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in UniFirst by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 8,613 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

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.