Truist Financial Corp Has $329,000 Stock Position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Truist Financial Corp boosted its position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,924 shares of the textile maker’s stock after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $329,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new position in UniFirst in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 1,105.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 229 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 16.5% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 367 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 291.6% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 466 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 74.1% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 740 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of UniFirst stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total value of $274,024.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,455 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,361,682.25. The trade was a 16.75 % 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. 0.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

UniFirst Price Performance

NYSE:UNF opened at $206.56 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $197.22. UniFirst Co. has a 1 year low of $149.58 and a 1 year high of $243.70. The company has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.41 and a beta of 0.89.

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

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on UNF shares. StockNews.com lowered UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group increased their price target on UniFirst from $190.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th.

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.