Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $13.49 Million Holdings in United Natural Foods, Inc. $UNFI

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 19.5% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 358,668 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 58,608 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $13,493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of UNFI. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in United Natural Foods by 7.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,603,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,690,000 after purchasing an additional 169,640 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 20.7% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,544,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,308,000 after purchasing an additional 436,680 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 2.0% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,424,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,203,000 after buying an additional 27,943 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 196.6% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 925,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,583,000 after buying an additional 613,790 shares during the period. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in United Natural Foods by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 902,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,035,000 after buying an additional 39,142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on UNFI. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of United Natural Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $40.00 target price on United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.78.

United Natural Foods Trading Down 1.6%

UNFI opened at $38.82 on Wednesday. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a twelve month low of $20.78 and a twelve month high of $43.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of $34.86 and a 200-day moving average of $33.97. The stock has a market cap of $2.37 billion, a PE ratio of -23.39 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.91 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.32% and a positive return on equity of 4.35%. United Natural Foods’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.16 earnings per share. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-2.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other United Natural Foods news, CAO Richard Eric Esper sold 4,261 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.08, for a total value of $140,953.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 37,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,236,166.52. The trade was a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Louis Anthony Martin sold 9,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total value of $327,250.13. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 81,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,816,382.78. This trade represents a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Natural Foods 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.