Unifirst Corporation $UNF Shares Bought by Strs Ohio

Strs Ohio grew its holdings in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,300 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Unifirst were worth $998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of UNF. SageView Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in Unifirst by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 0.9% in the second quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 7,426 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Unifirst by 59.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 227 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Unifirst by 4.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 2,323 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $404,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Unifirst by 474.1% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 155 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unifirst Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE:UNF opened at $149.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.79 and a beta of 0.81. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $166.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.07. Unifirst Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $147.66 and a fifty-two week high of $243.70.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $614.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $607.02 million. Unifirst had a return on equity of 7.11% and a net margin of 6.10%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.39 EPS. Unifirst has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.580-6.980 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Unifirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be issued a $0.365 dividend. This is a positive change from Unifirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Unifirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Monday, July 14th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $175.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Unifirst from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded Unifirst from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, UBS Group set a $182.00 price target on Unifirst in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Unifirst currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $174.75.

Unifirst Company 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.