Commerce Bank Invests $47.05 Million in US Foods Holding Corp. (NYSE:USFD)

Key Points

• Commerce Bank acquired 718,737 shares of US Foods Holding Corp. for approximately $47 million, representing a 0.31% stake in the company.
• Wall Street analysts are optimistic about US Foods, with a consensus "Buy" rating and an average price target of $78.42 following multiple upgrades from firms like UBS and Barclays.
• US Foods reported earnings of $0.68 EPS for the last quarter, slightly missing analyst expectations, while revenue increased 4.5% year-over-year.

Commerce Bank acquired a new stake in US Foods Holding Corp. (NYSE:USFD - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 718,737 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $47,049,000. Commerce Bank owned about 0.31% of US Foods as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in US Foods in the first quarter valued at about $203,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in US Foods by 5.6% during the first quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 155,781 shares of the company's stock worth $10,197,000 after acquiring an additional 8,248 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in US Foods by 24.0% during the first quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 25,040 shares of the company's stock worth $1,639,000 after acquiring an additional 4,840 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in US Foods in the first quarter valued at approximately $96,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in US Foods by 2.8% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 91,188 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,969,000 after purchasing an additional 2,496 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 98.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

USFD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on US Foods from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of US Foods in a report on Sunday, July 13th. UBS Group increased their price objective on US Foods from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $89.00 price objective (up previously from $84.00) on shares of US Foods in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of US Foods in a research report on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $78.42.

US Foods Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE USFD traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $82.10. 971,758 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,201,917. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.99 billion, a PE ratio of 37.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.44. US Foods Holding Corp. has a 52-week low of $50.49 and a 52-week high of $85.11. The business's fifty day moving average price is $79.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $72.01.

US Foods (NYSE:USFD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.01). US Foods had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 15.58%. The company had revenue of $9.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that US Foods Holding Corp. will post 3.59 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Dirk J. Locascio sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $1,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 115,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,630,775. This trade represents a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

US Foods Company Profile

US Foods Holding Corp., together with its subsidiaries, engages in marketing, sale, and distribution of fresh, frozen, and dry food and non-food products to foodservice customers in the United States. The company's customers include independently owned single and multi-unit restaurants, regional concepts, national restaurant chains, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels and motels, country clubs, government and military organizations, colleges and universities, and retail locations.