Clearline Capital LP Invests $11.22 Million in Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Key Points

• Clearline Capital LP has acquired a new stake in Unifirst Corporation, purchasing 64,477 shares valued at approximately $11.2 million, which represents a 0.35% ownership in the company.
• Multiple institutional investors have significantly adjusted their holdings in Unifirst, with Jones Financial Companies Lllp raising its stake by over 85,000% in the first quarter.
• Unifirst recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 0.8%, with a dividend payout ratio of 17.20%.

Clearline Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 64,477 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $11,219,000. Clearline Capital LP owned 0.35% of Unifirst at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNF. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in shares of Unifirst by 85,558.5% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 307,514 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $53,507,000 after purchasing an additional 307,155 shares during the period. Voss Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Unifirst during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,529,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Unifirst by 353.8% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 171,346 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $29,815,000 after purchasing an additional 133,588 shares during the period. Ulysses Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unifirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $8,318,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Unifirst during the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,081,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNF. Robert W. Baird set a $197.00 price objective on Unifirst in a report on Monday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Unifirst in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $175.00 price objective for the company. Barclays set a $152.00 price objective on Unifirst and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on Unifirst from $196.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unifirst currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $179.50.

Unifirst Price Performance

Shares of UNF traded down $4.61 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $171.61. 80,916 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 78,608. The company has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $174.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.66. Unifirst Corporation has a one year low of $156.34 and a one year high of $243.70.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 2nd. The textile maker reported $2.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $610.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $614.50 million. Unifirst had a return on equity of 7.35% and a net margin of 6.18%.The company's revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.20 EPS. Unifirst has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.600-8.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Unifirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Unifirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.20%.

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.