Vestcor Inc Boosts Holdings in US Foods Holding Corp. (NYSE:USFD)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc increased its stake in US Foods Holding Corp. by 24% in the first quarter, purchasing an additional 4,840 shares, bringing its total holdings to 25,040 shares valued at approximately $1.64 million.
• Several large investors, including LPL Financial and Pictet Asset Management, have also increased their positions in US Foods, contributing to institutional investors owning 98.76% of the company's stock.
• Wall Street analysts have a positive outlook on US Foods with multiple firms issuing "buy" ratings and raising target prices, reflecting strong investor confidence despite a slight miss in quarterly earnings.

Vestcor Inc raised its position in US Foods Holding Corp. (NYSE:USFD - Free Report) by 24.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,040 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,840 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in US Foods were worth $1,639,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new stake in US Foods during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of US Foods by 94.5% in the 4th quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 389 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of US Foods in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in shares of US Foods by 153.6% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 492 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of US Foods by 487.2% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 875 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on USFD. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating on shares of US Foods in a research note on Sunday, July 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of US Foods from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of US Foods in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of US Foods in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of US Foods from $84.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, US Foods presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $78.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other US Foods news, EVP Dirk J. Locascio sold 15,000 shares of US Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total transaction of $1,125,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 115,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,630,775. The trade was a 11.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

US Foods Trading Down 0.1%

USFD stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $83.28. 1,898,482 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,330,051. The company has a market capitalization of $19.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.20, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.74. US Foods Holding Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $50.49 and a fifty-two week high of $85.11. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $79.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.88.

US Foods (NYSE:USFD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $9.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.42 billion. US Foods had a net margin of 1.38% and a return on equity of 15.58%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that US Foods Holding Corp. will post 3.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About US Foods

US Foods Holding Corp., together with its subsidiaries, engages in marketing, sale, and distribution of fresh, frozen, and dry food and non-food products to foodservice customers in the United States. The company's customers include independently owned single and multi-unit restaurants, regional concepts, national restaurant chains, hospitals, nursing homes, hotels and motels, country clubs, government and military organizations, colleges and universities, and retail locations.