Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Lowers Stock Holdings in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its stake in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,055 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 407 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in UniFirst were worth $2,062,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of UniFirst in the fourth quarter worth $24,576,000. Barclays PLC grew its position in UniFirst by 464.6% during 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. Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its position in UniFirst by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 365,047 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $62,456,000 after purchasing an additional 32,860 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in UniFirst by 173.9% in the third quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 47,968 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $9,529,000 after buying an additional 30,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. lifted its stake in shares of UniFirst by 81.9% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 22,031 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $4,376,000 after buying an additional 9,918 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of UNF stock opened at $173.77 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $210.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $198.59. UniFirst Co. has a 52 week low of $149.58 and a 52 week high of $243.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22 and a beta of 0.89.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $604.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $606.60 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.26 EPS. Analysts anticipate that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is 17.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total value of $274,024.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at $1,361,682.25. This represents a 16.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

UNF has been the subject of several analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of UniFirst from $235.00 to $194.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com cut UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th.

UniFirst Profile

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.