David Martin Katz Sells 1,299 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Stock

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,361,682.25. This represents a 16.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

UniFirst Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of UNF stock opened at $214.10 on Friday. UniFirst Co. has a 12 month low of $149.58 and a 12 month high of $243.70. The firm has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 27.38 and a beta of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $205.24 and a 200-day moving average of $195.63.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $604.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $606.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.26 earnings per share. UniFirst’s revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. UniFirst’s payout ratio is presently 17.90%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UniFirst

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of UniFirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,133,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in UniFirst in the fourth quarter worth $24,576,000. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in UniFirst in the third quarter worth $10,270,000. Ulysses Management LLC acquired a new stake in UniFirst during the fourth quarter worth $8,318,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in UniFirst by 148.4% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 76,742 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $13,130,000 after buying an additional 45,850 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on UNF. UBS Group boosted their price target on UniFirst from $190.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $197.50.

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.