Strs Ohio Takes Position in Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has acquired a new position in UniFirst Corporation, purchasing 4,900 shares valued at approximately $853,000 during the first quarter of the year.
• Despite a recent 1.4% decline in stock price, UniFirst Corporation reported earnings of $2.13 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.09.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.8% for investors of record on September 5th.

Strs Ohio bought a new stake in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 4,900 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $853,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of UNF. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its position in Unifirst by 85,558.5% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 307,514 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $53,507,000 after purchasing an additional 307,155 shares during the last quarter. Voss Capital LP bought a new position in Unifirst in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,529,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Unifirst by 353.8% in the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 171,346 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $29,815,000 after purchasing an additional 133,588 shares during the last quarter. Clearline Capital LP bought a new position in Unifirst in the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,219,000. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Unifirst in the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,081,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Unifirst Stock Performance

NYSE UNF traded down $0.79 on Tuesday, reaching $170.69. The company had a trading volume of 8,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,034. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.97 and a beta of 0.86. Unifirst Corporation has a 1-year low of $156.34 and a 1-year high of $243.70. The company's fifty day moving average is $174.17 and its 200-day moving average is $179.58.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 2nd. The textile maker reported $2.13 earnings per share 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 analyst estimates of $614.50 million. Unifirst had a net margin of 6.18% and a return on equity of 7.35%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.20 EPS. Unifirst has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.600-8.00 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Unifirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. Unifirst's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays set a $152.00 price objective on shares of Unifirst and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Monday, July 14th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $175.00 target price for the company. Robert W. Baird set a $197.00 price target on Unifirst in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on Unifirst from $196.00 to $194.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $179.50.

Unifirst 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.