Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 8,032 Shares of UniFirst Corporation $UNF

Geode Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 358,876 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 8,032 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.99% of UniFirst worth $69,239,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of UNF. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in UniFirst by 60.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,341 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $51,384,000 after purchasing an additional 115,802 shares during the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 3rd quarter worth about $18,177,000. Tweedy Browne Co LLC bought a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 4th quarter worth about $19,687,000. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,442,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 85.4% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 105,005 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $19,764,000 after acquiring an additional 48,378 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UNF. UBS Group lifted their price objective on UniFirst from $206.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on UniFirst from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised UniFirst from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $228.25.

UniFirst Price Performance

Shares of UNF opened at $264.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $259.77 and a 200-day moving average of $229.13. The company has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a PE ratio of 35.85 and a beta of 0.63. UniFirst Corporation has a one year low of $147.66 and a one year high of $283.77.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The textile maker reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.21 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $622.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $614.91 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 5.49% and a return on equity of 6.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. Analysts expect that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $0.365 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.78%.

About UniFirst

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a leading provider of customized uniform rental and facility service programs in North America and Europe. The company specializes in the rental, laundering and maintenance of workwear, corporate apparel and protective garments for a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, hospitality, healthcare and food processing. UniFirst also offers a suite of facility service products such as entrance mats, restroom supplies, wipers, mops and hygienic services designed to help customers maintain clean and safe environments.

In addition to its core uniform rental business, UniFirst has expanded its product portfolio to include safety and first-responder gear, flame-resistant clothing, high-visibility apparel and personal protective equipment (PPE).