Comerica Bank Acquires 12,465 Shares of UniFirst Corporation $UNF

Key Points

• Comerica Bank boosted its stake in UniFirst by 66.7%, buying an additional 12,465 shares to hold 31,163 shares worth about $6.01 million (≈0.17% of the company).
• UniFirst missed EPS for the quarter ($1.13 vs. $1.21 expected) but revenue topped estimates at $622.5M (up 3.4% YoY), and the company declared a $0.365 quarterly dividend ($1.46 annual; ~0.6% yield).
• Institutional investors own about 78.17% of UNF, several funds recently increased positions, and analysts hold a consensus "Reduce" rating with a $228.25 target (recent targets range roughly $198–$280).

Comerica Bank grew its holdings in shares of UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 66.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,163 shares of the textile maker's stock after acquiring an additional 12,465 shares during the period. Comerica Bank owned about 0.17% of UniFirst worth $6,011,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of UNF. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in UniFirst by 60.5% during the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,341 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $51,384,000 after buying an additional 115,802 shares during the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC bought a new position in UniFirst during the third quarter worth $18,177,000. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC bought a new position in UniFirst during the third quarter worth $8,442,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in UniFirst by 85.4% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 105,005 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $19,764,000 after buying an additional 48,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Topline Capital Management LLC raised its stake in UniFirst by 64.1% during the third quarter. Topline Capital Management LLC now owns 122,381 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $20,461,000 after buying an additional 47,819 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

UniFirst Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:UNF opened at $255.61 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.64 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $255.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.24. UniFirst Corporation has a 12 month low of $147.66 and a 12 month high of $283.77.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The textile maker reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $622.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $614.91 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.49% and a net margin of 5.49%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $0.365 dividend. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on UNF. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of UniFirst from $206.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Robert W. Baird set a $198.00 target price on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of UniFirst from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UniFirst has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $228.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,464 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.54, for a total value of $347,758.56. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,745.94. This trade represents a 18.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

UniFirst Company Profile

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).

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding UNF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.