EVR Research LP Makes New $1.93 Million Investment in UniFirst Corporation $UNF

EVR Research LP purchased a new stake in shares of UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 10,000 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $1,929,000. UniFirst accounts for about 1.0% of EVR Research LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. EVR Research LP owned about 0.06% of UniFirst at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Engine Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 640.5% in the 4th quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 459,871 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $88,709,000 after acquiring an additional 397,772 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at $12,318,000. Jain Global LLC acquired a new stake in UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at $223,000. Westerly Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at $4,822,000. Finally, FIL Ltd acquired a new position in shares of UniFirst during the 4th quarter worth $8,198,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Performance

UniFirst stock opened at $260.09 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $261.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $234.17. The company has a market capitalization of $4.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.24 and a beta of 0.63. UniFirst Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $147.66 and a fifty-two week high of $283.77.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The textile maker reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.21 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $622.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $614.91 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 5.49%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNF has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of UniFirst from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings raised UniFirst from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on UniFirst from $206.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $228.25.

About UniFirst

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a leading provider of customized uniform rental and facility service programs in North America and Europe. The company specializes in the rental, laundering and maintenance of workwear, corporate apparel and protective garments for a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, hospitality, healthcare and food processing. UniFirst also offers a suite of facility service products such as entrance mats, restroom supplies, wipers, mops and hygienic services designed to help customers maintain clean and safe environments.

In addition to its core uniform rental business, UniFirst has expanded its product portfolio to include safety and first-responder gear, flame-resistant clothing, high-visibility apparel and personal protective equipment (PPE).