California Public Employees Retirement System grew its position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF – Get Rating) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,721 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,569 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.21% of UniFirst worth $7,473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in UniFirst in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Covestor Ltd grew its position in UniFirst by 187.4% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 273 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in UniFirst by 328.9% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 356 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in UniFirst in the first quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in UniFirst in the first quarter worth $103,000. 77.73% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
UNF has been the subject of several research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of UniFirst from $225.00 to $203.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 30th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded shares of UniFirst from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 5th.
UniFirst Stock Down 0.4 %
UniFirst (NYSE:UNF – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 29th. The textile maker reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.40). The business had revenue of $542.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $531.68 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.56% and a net margin of 4.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that UniFirst Co. will post 7.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
UniFirst Dividend Announcement
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.63%.
About UniFirst
UniFirst Corp. engages in the provision of workplace uniforms and protective work wear clothing. It operates through following segments: the United States and Canadian Rental and Cleaning, Manufacturing (MFG), Specialty Garments, First Aid, and Corporate. The U.S. and Canadian Rental and Cleaning segment purchases, rents, cleans, delivers, and sells uniforms, protective clothing, and non-garment items.
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