ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC Invests $2.09 Million in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 12,000 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $2,088,000. UniFirst comprises about 2.8% of ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC owned approximately 0.06% of UniFirst as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in UniFirst by 1,105.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 229 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 740 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 10,886 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,862,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in UniFirst by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 72,807 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $12,457,000 after buying an additional 1,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp grew its stake in UniFirst by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,924 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of UniFirst from $194.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on UniFirst from $218.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $152.00 price target (down previously from $180.00) on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $180.00.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of UniFirst stock traded down $3.23 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $184.31. 103,131 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 106,119. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $181.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $194.00. The stock has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57 and a beta of 0.87. UniFirst Co. has a 12 month low of $150.83 and a 12 month high of $243.70.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 2nd. The textile maker reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.03). UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 6.00%. The company had revenue of $602.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $602.81 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. UniFirst's payout ratio is 17.41%.

UniFirst declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, April 8th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the textile maker to buy up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

UniFirst Profile

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.