United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.07 EPS

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.07, FiscalAI reports. United Natural Foods had a net margin of 0.27% and a return on equity of 10.51%. The firm had revenue of $7.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.11) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. United Natural Foods updated its FY 2027 guidance to 3.000-3.500 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from United Natural Foods’ conference call:

• Positive Sentiment: UNFI reported fiscal 2026 Adjusted EBITDA of $701 million, up 27% year over year, and record free cash flow of $323 million. Net leverage fell to 2.2x from 3.3x, supported by lower debt and refinancing savings.
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects fiscal 2027 Adjusted EBITDA of $730 million to $780 million, or high-single-digit growth at the midpoint, with Adjusted EPS of $3.00 to $3.50. The company said the outlook positions it to reach its fiscal 2028 margin target one year early.
• Neutral Sentiment: Fiscal 2027 sales are expected to rise about 1% at the midpoint to $31.2 billion-$31.8 billion, but revenue is likely to decline in the first quarter as optimization actions and project work are lapped before returning to profitable growth in the second half.
• Negative Sentiment: Conventional product sales declined mid-single digits and retail sales fell 8% in the quarter, while higher fuel costs, low-single-digit inflation, and increased fiscal 2027 capital spending of about $300 million are expected to pressure results and offset some EBITDA growth in free cash flow.
• Positive Sentiment: The board authorized a new $200 million share-repurchase program after UNFI repurchased approximately $50 million of stock in fiscal 2026, while management plans to reduce leverage below 2.0x by the end of fiscal 2027.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

UNFI opened at $44.55 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a fifty day moving average of $47.56 and a 200 day moving average of $46.93. United Natural Foods has a fifty-two week low of $27.97 and a fifty-two week high of $57.02.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNFI has been the topic of several recent research reports. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group raised their target price on United Natural Foods from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $61.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

Insider Activity at United Natural Foods

In other United Natural Foods news, insider Mark Bushway sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total transaction of $515,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,635,695.64. This represents a 16.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNFI. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $656,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 52.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 111,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,064,000 after acquiring an additional 38,504 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 5.1% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 35,117 shares of the company’s stock valued at $962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,703 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in United Natural Foods by 58.1% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 332,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,120,000 after purchasing an additional 122,412 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 10.4% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 625,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,132,000 after purchasing an additional 58,705 shares in the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting United Natural Foods

Here are the key news stories impacting United Natural Foods this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UNFI reported fourth-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.69, exceeding the $0.62 consensus and improving substantially from a $0.11 loss a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA increased 48.3% as margin gains and cost savings offset lower sales. UNFI Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates on Margin Gains and Cost Savings
• Positive Sentiment: Management authorized a new $200 million share-repurchase program, which could support per-share results and signals confidence in the company’s cash-generation plans. United Natural Foods Announces New $200M Share Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: UNFI forecast fiscal 2027 adjusted EPS of $3.00-$3.50 and expects profit and sales growth as it adds business from new and existing customers. The company also plans to reduce leverage to below two times. UNFI Outlines Fiscal 2027 Adjusted EPS and Leverage Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Natural-food sales increased, but the conventional-grocery segment declined, highlighting continued pressure on the company’s sales mix and grocery-distribution profitability. UNFI’s Natural Sales Rise as Conventional Segment Declines
• Negative Sentiment: Fourth-quarter revenue fell 0.7% year over year to $7.64 billion and missed the $7.71 billion analyst estimate. Fiscal 2027 revenue guidance of $31.2-$31.8 billion is also below the $31.9 billion consensus, while management expects additional inflation and must rely on productivity rather than price increases to expand margins. UNFI Reports Lower Sales in Q4

United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc (NYSE: UNFI) is a leading distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods in North America. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest food distributors serving retail, foodservice and e-commerce customers.

UNFI’s core business centers on the procurement, warehousing and distribution of a broad portfolio of products, including fresh produce, groceries, frozen foods, dairy, bakery items, beverages, supplements and household essentials.