SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Stock Position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

SG Americas Securities LLC lessened its holdings in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 91.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 820 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 8,480 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in UniFirst were worth $150,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in UniFirst by 187.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 273 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in UniFirst by 28.9% in the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 393 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in UniFirst in the first quarter worth $69,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in UniFirst by 16.7% in the second quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of UniFirst in the third quarter worth $99,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on UNF. Barclays increased their target price on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group increased their target price on UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Robert W. Baird reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, StockNews.com cut UniFirst from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $177.75.

UniFirst Price Performance

Shares of UniFirst stock traded down $1.14 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $156.15. 79,126 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 87,015. UniFirst Co. has a 1 year low of $150.50 and a 1 year high of $187.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.75 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.79.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.60%.

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In related news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total transaction of $399,966.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.