Michael Iandoli Sells 682 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Stock

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Director Michael Iandoli sold 682 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.30, for a total transaction of $132,512.60. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,744 shares in the company, valued at approximately $921,759.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $189.12 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $169.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $167.80. The company has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 27.61 and a beta of 0.81. UniFirst Co. has a 52-week low of $149.58 and a 52-week high of $197.88.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The textile maker reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.88 by $0.31. UniFirst had a net margin of 5.44% and a return on equity of 6.93%. The firm had revenue of $603.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $600.97 million. On average, analysts forecast that UniFirst Co. will post 7.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. UniFirst’s payout ratio is 19.27%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNF. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 204,545 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $37,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in UniFirst during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,390,000. Oak Family Advisors LLC increased its holdings in UniFirst by 73.7% during the fourth quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC now owns 2,857 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $523,000 after buying an additional 1,212 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance purchased a new stake in UniFirst during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $224,000. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in UniFirst by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 848,299 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $155,162,000 after buying an additional 4,078 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNF has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 4th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of UniFirst from $185.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of UniFirst from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of UniFirst from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, UniFirst presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.00.

About UniFirst

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.