Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Holdings in United Natural Foods, Inc. $UNFI

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in United Natural Foods, Inc. by 1.1%, now holding approximately 12.36% of the company, worth $204.9 million.
• Several hedge funds increased their positions in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter, indicating strong interest, with 87.63% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.
• United Natural Foods reported earnings of $0.44 per share, significantly beating estimates, with revenues of $8.06 billion for the quarter, up 7.5% from last year.

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI - Free Report) by 1.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,482,116 shares of the company's stock after selling 86,211 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 12.36% of United Natural Foods worth $204,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,531,673 shares of the company's stock valued at $96,450,000 after buying an additional 314,587 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 2,886,938 shares of the company's stock valued at $78,842,000 after buying an additional 110,608 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 881,982 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,087,000 after buying an additional 242,293 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 756,585 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,662,000 after buying an additional 118,817 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC increased its stake in United Natural Foods by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 706,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,294,000 after purchasing an additional 134,841 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company's stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:UNFI traded up $0.4340 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $27.4040. 653,695 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 856,266. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $25.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.86. The company has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a PE ratio of -23.83 and a beta of 0.82. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.28 and a 12 month high of $34.76.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $8.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.78 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.21% and a positive return on equity of 3.13%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.700-0.900 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNFI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $24.00 price target on shares of United Natural Foods and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $32.00 to $25.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Northcoast Research raised shares of United Natural Foods from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $36.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of United Natural Foods from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $25.00 to $26.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $28.13.

United Natural Foods Company 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.