United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Trading Down 3.6% Following Insider Selling

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) shares fell 3.6% during trading on Monday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $20.70 and last traded at $20.76. 48,807 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 697,873 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.53.

Specifically, insider Danielle Benedict sold 9,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.10, for a total transaction of $200,005.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 88,218 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,949,617.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNFI has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on United Natural Foods from $14.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Northcoast Research upgraded United Natural Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on United Natural Foods from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on United Natural Foods from $16.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.40.

United Natural Foods Stock Up 1.0 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of -10.92 and a beta of 0.63.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.09. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.36% and a positive return on equity of 0.54%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.25) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Natural Foods

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UNFI. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in United Natural Foods by 86.6% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 264,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,461,000 after acquiring an additional 122,626 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in United Natural Foods in the first quarter worth about $2,317,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 4.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,587,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,175,000 after buying an additional 321,020 shares during the period. Aristeia Capital L.L.C. bought a new stake in United Natural Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $661,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,655,000. 87.63% of the stock is owned by 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.