William Blair Weighs in on UniFirst Co.’s Q4 2024 Earnings (NYSE:UNF)

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) – Research analysts at William Blair increased their Q4 2024 earnings per share estimates for UniFirst in a report issued on Wednesday, June 26th. William Blair analyst T. Mulrooney now anticipates that the textile maker will post earnings per share of $2.04 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.96. The consensus estimate for UniFirst’s current full-year earnings is $7.44 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for UniFirst’s Q1 2025 earnings at $2.39 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.45 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.09 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $8.15 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $8.97 EPS.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The textile maker reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.19). UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.93% and a net margin of 5.44%. The company had revenue of $590.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $587.56 million.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on UNF. StockNews.com raised UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on UniFirst from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays increased their price objective on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of UniFirst from $185.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of UniFirst from $186.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, UniFirst presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.00.

UniFirst Price Performance

UniFirst stock opened at $171.50 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $160.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $167.25. The company has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.04 and a beta of 0.85. UniFirst has a fifty-two week low of $149.58 and a fifty-two week high of $187.22.

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 is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.27%.

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In other news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.73, for a total transaction of $1,746,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 87,558 shares in the company, valued at $13,898,081.34. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, major shareholder Cecelia Levenstein sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.73, for a total value of $1,746,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 87,558 shares in the company, valued at $13,898,081.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Michael A. Croatti sold 1,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.00, for a total value of $304,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,747 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $971,243. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 28,033 shares of company stock worth $4,398,882 in the last 90 days. 0.74% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of UniFirst

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 171 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in UniFirst by 69.7% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 414 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $72,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in UniFirst during the fourth quarter worth $80,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UniFirst in the 4th quarter valued at $82,000. Finally, Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of UniFirst during the 3rd quarter worth about $99,000. 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.