UniFirst Corp (NYSE:UNF) – Research analysts at Northcoast Research boosted their FY2019 EPS estimates for shares of UniFirst in a research note issued on Thursday, June 27th. Northcoast Research analyst J. Healy now anticipates that the textile maker will post earnings per share of $7.77 for the year, up from their prior estimate of $6.93.
UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The textile maker reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.76. UniFirst had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 9.21%. The firm had revenue of $453.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $441.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year.
Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on UNF. Zacks Investment Research raised UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $173.00 target price on the stock in a report on Saturday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on UniFirst from $155.00 to $183.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, ValuEngine raised UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 27th.
Shares of UNF stock opened at $187.67 on Monday. UniFirst has a 12-month low of $132.38 and a 12-month high of $191.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $165.35. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.19 and a beta of 0.74.
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Marshall Wace North America L.P. increased its stake in UniFirst by 17.4% during the first quarter. Marshall Wace North America L.P. now owns 473 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. First Republic Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 0.8% during the first quarter. First Republic Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,145 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,711,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Comerica Bank boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 15,185 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $2,059,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 1.8% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 5,977 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $917,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 2,198 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $314,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. 77.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
In other UniFirst news, VP Michael A. Croatti sold 532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.35, for a total transaction of $83,178.20. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,651 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,533.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael Iandoli sold 544 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.04, for a total value of $84,341.76. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $775,200. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,587 shares of company stock worth $1,336,378 over the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.1125 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $0.45 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.24%. UniFirst’s payout ratio is currently 6.04%.
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. Rental and Cleaning, 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.