Moran Wealth Management LLC Acquires 414 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 23,947 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $4,097,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of UNF. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $333,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 6,905 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,372,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of UniFirst in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $287,000. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 110,646 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $21,287,000 after acquiring an additional 2,952 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 654,495 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $130,015,000 after acquiring an additional 32,447 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of UNF stock opened at $205.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.22 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $212.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $198.04. UniFirst Co. has a 52 week low of $149.58 and a 52 week high of $243.70.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $604.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $606.60 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.26 EPS. Analysts forecast that UniFirst Co. 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 issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total transaction of $274,024.05. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,361,682.25. This trade represents a 16.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of UniFirst from $190.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th.

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.