UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Shares Sold by Jane Street Group LLC

Jane Street Group LLC decreased its position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 79.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,852 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 19,126 shares during the quarter. Jane Street Group LLC's holdings in UniFirst were worth $830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in UNF. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of UniFirst by 464.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 41,220 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $8,188,000 after acquiring an additional 33,919 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of UniFirst in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $255,000. Inspire Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of UniFirst by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,337 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $400,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of UniFirst by 1,373.7% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 280 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of UniFirst by 74.1% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 740 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNF traded up $5.31 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $188.76. The stock had a trading volume of 67,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 105,285. UniFirst Co. has a 1-year low of $149.58 and a 1-year high of $243.70. The stock has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a PE ratio of 24.14 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $178.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.00.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 2nd. The textile maker reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $602.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $602.81 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 6.00%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.09 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, April 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the textile maker to repurchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on UNF shares. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $152.00 price target (down previously from $180.00) on shares of UniFirst in a report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of UniFirst from $194.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of UniFirst from $218.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UniFirst currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $180.00.

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.