London Co. of Virginia Sells 16,858 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

London Co. of Virginia decreased its position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 979,987 shares of the textile maker's stock after selling 16,858 shares during the period. London Co. of Virginia owned about 5.28% of UniFirst worth $167,666,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Independence Bank of Kentucky purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in UniFirst by 1,105.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 229 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in UniFirst by 252.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 345 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 247 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 187.2% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 359 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 811.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 474 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

UniFirst Price Performance

NYSE UNF traded up $4.98 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $186.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 63,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 104,938. The company has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90 and a beta of 0.87. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $181.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $194.98. UniFirst Co. has a 12 month low of $149.58 and a 12 month high of $243.70.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 2nd. The textile maker reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $602.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $602.81 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 6.00%. UniFirst's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.09 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 8th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the textile maker to repurchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.41%.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total transaction of $274,024.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at $1,361,682.25. The trade was a 16.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UNF. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of UniFirst from $194.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of UniFirst from $218.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $152.00 price target (down previously from $180.00) on shares of UniFirst in a report on Friday, April 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UniFirst presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $180.00.

About UniFirst

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.