Arizona State Retirement System Sells 78 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Arizona State Retirement System reduced its stake in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,222 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 78 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $772,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of UNF. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY boosted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 920 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $178,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,457 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,269 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $533,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 1,308 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 579 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

UniFirst Stock Performance

NYSE:UNF opened at $156.15 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $168.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $169.70. UniFirst Co. has a 52-week low of $150.50 and a 52-week high of $187.22. The company has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.56 and a beta of 0.82.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on UNF shares. StockNews.com downgraded UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 23rd. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 target price on shares of UniFirst in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $177.75.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total value of $399,966.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 4,034 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.74% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.