UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Sets New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $206.05 and last traded at $203.91, with a volume of 10637 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $200.23.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on UNF shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com upgraded UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, UniFirst has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $186.25.

UniFirst Trading Down 1.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $192.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $180.53.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This is a boost from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.99%.

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total transaction of $619,079.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,357,105.84. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total transaction of $113,337.96. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,086,075. This represents a 9.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,294 shares of company stock worth $2,546,632 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UniFirst

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of UNF. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 291.6% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 466 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of UniFirst by 1.2% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 349,298 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $69,401,000 after purchasing an additional 4,136 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in UniFirst by 464.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 41,220 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $8,188,000 after purchasing an additional 33,919 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in UniFirst in the 3rd quarter valued at $301,000. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in UniFirst by 9.0% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 8,231 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,635,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.