Wolverine Trading LLC Buys New Holdings in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Wolverine Trading LLC purchased a new position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,139 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $219,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its position in UniFirst by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 2,630 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $451,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the period. Oak Family Advisors LLC raised its position in UniFirst by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $500,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 1.3% in the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 7,600 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,304,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in UniFirst by 2.9% during the second quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $481,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in UniFirst by 22.2% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,862 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $491,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $190.05 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $193.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $183.59. UniFirst Co. has a one year low of $149.58 and a one year high of $208.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 24.46 and a beta of 0.84.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This is a positive change from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.02%.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In other news, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of UniFirst stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total value of $113,337.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,086,075. The trade was a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total value of $619,079.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,357,105.84. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,294 shares of company stock worth $2,546,632 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

UNF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.25.

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.