Public Sector Pension Investment Board Has $8.28 Million Position in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF)

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Unifirst Corporation by 27.3% in the first quarter, owning 47,558 shares valued at approximately $8.28 million.
• Institutional investors currently own 78.17% of Unifirst's stock, with notable increases in holdings from GAMMA Investing LLC and Fifth Third Bancorp in the same quarter.
• Analysts have set varied price targets for Unifirst, with a consensus target of $179.50 and a rating of "Hold," following recent performance that included a quarterly EPS of $2.13.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 27.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 47,558 shares of the textile maker's stock after purchasing an additional 10,192 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned 0.26% of Unifirst worth $8,275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 59.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 227 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of Unifirst by 88.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 266 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Unifirst by 811.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 474 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares in the last quarter. Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in shares of Unifirst in the first quarter valued at about $87,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unifirst in the fourth quarter valued at about $104,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNF has been the topic of several research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $197.00 price target on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Monday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Monday, July 14th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $175.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Unifirst from $196.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, Barclays set a $152.00 price target on shares of Unifirst and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $179.50.

Unifirst Price Performance

UNF traded down $1.38 on Friday, hitting $173.34. 64,978 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 101,631. Unifirst Corporation has a 12 month low of $156.34 and a 12 month high of $243.70. The business has a 50-day moving average of $178.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 0.85.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 2nd. The textile maker reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $610.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $614.50 million. Unifirst had a net margin of 6.18% and a return on equity of 7.35%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unifirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Unifirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.20%.

Unifirst Company Profile

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.