T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Buys 133,588 Shares of Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Unifirst Corporation by 353.8% in the first quarter, now holding 171,346 shares valued at approximately $29.8 million.
• Analysts currently have a consensus rating of "Reduce" for Unifirst, with an average price target of $179.50, following varying ratings from firms like JPMorgan and UBS.
• Unifirst announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, scheduled for payment on September 26th, yielding an annualized rate of 0.8%.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 353.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 171,346 shares of the textile maker's stock after acquiring an additional 133,588 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.92% of Unifirst worth $29,815,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Unifirst during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $248,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Unifirst by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 763,689 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $130,660,000 after purchasing an additional 15,517 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Unifirst by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 9,052 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $1,549,000 after buying an additional 468 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 8,875 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,518,000 after buying an additional 644 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in Unifirst by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 36,167 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $6,188,000 after acquiring an additional 1,456 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Unifirst Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of UNF traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $177.33. 34,500 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 129,043. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $176.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $184.87. Unifirst Corporation has a twelve month low of $156.34 and a twelve month high of $243.70.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 2nd. The textile maker reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $610.78 million for 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 quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.20 earnings per share. Unifirst has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.600-8.00 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Unifirst Announces Dividend

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