United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $21.48, but opened at $23.21. United Natural Foods shares last traded at $22.94, with a volume of 398,047 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on UNFI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on United Natural Foods from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 12th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of United Natural Foods from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. CL King raised shares of United Natural Foods from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $33.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $24.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded United Natural Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $26.43.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

The company's 50 day moving average price is $26.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.45. The company has a market cap of $1.41 billion, a PE ratio of -20.23 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 1.41.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 10th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.22. The firm 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.10 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised 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 worth $96,450,000 after purchasing an additional 314,587 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in United Natural Foods by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 2,886,938 shares of the company's stock worth $78,842,000 after acquiring an additional 110,608 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in United Natural Foods by 20.6% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,433,948 shares of the company's stock worth $66,666,000 after purchasing an additional 415,700 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 207.0% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,357,212 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,065,000 after purchasing an additional 915,177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in United Natural Foods during the first quarter valued at $24,171,000. 87.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.