Deutsche Bank AG Buys New Stake in UniFirst Corporation $UNF

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank acquired 21,189 UniFirst shares worth approximately $5.6 million, joining other institutional investors that increased their holdings. Institutions and hedge funds collectively own 78.17% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: UniFirst carries a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $246.67, while Weiss Ratings downgraded the stock to “hold.”
• UniFirst’s latest quarterly earnings missed expectations, with EPS of $1.09 versus the $1.93 estimate, although revenue rose 3.9% year over year to $634.4 million. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.365 per share, yielding about 0.5% annually.

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 21,189 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $5,604,000. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 0.12% of UniFirst at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of UNF. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 865,014 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $166,861,000 after acquiring an additional 75,524 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,418 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $151,895,000 after acquiring an additional 14,751 shares in the last quarter. Engine Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 640.5% during the 4th quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 459,871 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $88,709,000 after acquiring an additional 397,772 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in UniFirst by 46.8% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 451,194 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $87,035,000 after purchasing an additional 143,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP lifted its stake in UniFirst by 164.2% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 367,786 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $70,946,000 after purchasing an additional 228,586 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of UniFirst from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group set a $262.00 price objective on shares of UniFirst in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $246.67.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of UniFirst stock opened at $291.70 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.01 and a beta of 0.62. UniFirst Corporation has a 1 year low of $147.66 and a 1 year high of $306.67. The company's fifty day moving average is $281.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $263.69.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The textile maker reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.84). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.44% and a net margin of 4.65%.The business had revenue of $634.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $627.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.13 EPS. UniFirst's quarterly revenue was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.365 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.03%.

About UniFirst

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).

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