UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Price Target Lowered to $194.00 at UBS Group

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) had its target price lowered by UBS Group from $235.00 to $194.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the textile maker’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th.

UniFirst Stock Up 4.4 %

Shares of NYSE:UNF opened at $178.41 on Tuesday. UniFirst has a 52-week low of $149.58 and a 52-week high of $243.70. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.81 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a fifty day moving average of $211.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $198.63.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.09. UniFirst had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The firm had revenue of $604.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $606.60 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.26 earnings per share. UniFirst’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that UniFirst will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.78%. UniFirst’s payout ratio is currently 17.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total transaction of $274,024.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at $1,361,682.25. This represents a 16.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UniFirst

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 464.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 41,220 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $8,188,000 after acquiring an additional 33,919 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 24.7% in the fourth quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 11,519 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,974,000 after purchasing an additional 2,281 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its stake in UniFirst by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 365,047 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $62,456,000 after buying an additional 32,860 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in UniFirst by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,472 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.