Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Cuts Stake in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI - Free Report) by 96.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,026 shares of the company's stock after selling 219,653 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.'s holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in United Natural Foods in the 4th quarter valued at $324,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 368.8% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 62,830 shares of the company's stock worth $1,813,000 after purchasing an additional 49,427 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in United Natural Foods by 118.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 177,937 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,993,000 after purchasing an additional 96,341 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in United Natural Foods in the fourth quarter worth $656,000. Finally, Adero Partners LLC bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter worth about $243,000. 87.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on UNFI. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United Natural Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, CL King raised United Natural Foods from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $33.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $27.50.

United Natural Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNFI traded down $1.34 on Wednesday, reaching $29.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 495,335 shares, compared to its average volume of 704,690. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.48. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.46 and a 52-week high of $34.76. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $27.04. The company has a market cap of $1.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.83 and a beta of 1.08.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.96 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.30% and a positive return on equity of 1.27%. The company's revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.07 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Natural Foods Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products.