Victory Capital Management Inc. Has $81.64 Million Position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 446,335 shares of the textile maker's stock after acquiring an additional 21,685 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 2.39% of UniFirst worth $81,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Simplicity Solutions LLC boosted its position in UniFirst by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in UniFirst by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,556 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $417,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in UniFirst during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $384,000. SageView Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in UniFirst by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,457 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $238,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in UniFirst by 77.3% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 30,771 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $5,016,000 after purchasing an additional 13,417 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In other news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total value of $399,966.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,034 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

UniFirst Stock Up 1.6 %

UniFirst stock traded up $2.52 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $159.60. 58,843 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 82,107. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $166.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $169.66. The company has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.12 and a beta of 0.83. UniFirst Co. has a one year low of $150.50 and a one year high of $187.22.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The textile maker reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $590.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $587.56 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 4.92% and a return on equity of 6.19%. On average, analysts expect that UniFirst Co. will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com lowered UniFirst from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 27th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $177.75.

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.