Bank of America Corp DE Decreases Position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Bank of America Corp DE reduced its holdings in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 173,969 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 8,307 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.94% of UniFirst worth $29,764,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Independence Bank of Kentucky purchased a new stake in UniFirst in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in UniFirst by 1,105.3% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 229 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in UniFirst by 252.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 345 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in UniFirst by 187.2% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 359 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in UniFirst by 811.5% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 474 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on UNF shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of UniFirst from $218.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of UniFirst from $194.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $152.00 target price (down from $180.00) on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $180.00.

UniFirst Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of UniFirst stock traded down $1.01 on Friday, hitting $183.65. 52,559 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 105,219. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $178.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $195.15. The company has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.48 and a beta of 0.87. UniFirst Co. has a 12-month low of $149.58 and a 12-month high of $243.70.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 2nd. The textile maker reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $602.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $602.81 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.09 EPS. Analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

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

UniFirst declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 8th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the textile maker to reacquire up to 3.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

UniFirst Company 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.