Intech Investment Management LLC Raises Position in United Natural Foods, Inc. $UNFI

Key Points

• Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in United Natural Foods by 312.3% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 159,123 shares worth about $5.36 million.
• Analyst sentiment on UNFI is mixed but leans cautious: the stock’s consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $43.63, even as Wells Fargo and BMO recently raised targets and upgraded their views.
• United Natural Foods reported better-than-expected EPS of $0.62 for the quarter, but revenue came in below estimates at $7.95 billion; the stock recently traded near its 52-week high at $51.35.

Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI - Free Report) by 312.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 159,123 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 120,525 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.26% of United Natural Foods worth $5,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNFI. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 4,266.7% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 786 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 84.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on UNFI shares. UBS Group raised their target price on United Natural Foods from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered United Natural Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded United Natural Foods from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on United Natural Foods from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $43.63.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

Shares of UNFI stock opened at $51.35 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -39.50 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.77 and a 200 day moving average of $40.42. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.78 and a 1 year high of $53.18.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 10th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.11 billion. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 6.05% and a negative net margin of 0.25%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.300-2.700 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Natural Foods news, insider Danielle Benedict sold 4,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total transaction of $249,964.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 98,470 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,120,440. This trade represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

United Natural Foods Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc NYSE: UNFI is a leading distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods in North America. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest food distributors serving retail, foodservice and e-commerce customers.

UNFI's core business centers on the procurement, warehousing and distribution of a broad portfolio of products, including fresh produce, groceries, frozen foods, dairy, bakery items, beverages, supplements and household essentials.

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