Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Invests $482,000 in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 29,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $482,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of UNFI. EMC Capital Management lifted its stake in United Natural Foods by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after acquiring an additional 691 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in United Natural Foods by 0.8% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 109,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,543,000 after purchasing an additional 837 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in United Natural Foods by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 21,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 4,689 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 45,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after buying an additional 6,035 shares during the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Natural Foods Price Performance

Shares of United Natural Foods stock opened at $9.26 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $550.41 million, a P/E ratio of -4.75 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $11.80 and its 200 day moving average is $14.19. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a one year low of $8.58 and a one year high of $28.37.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 6th. The company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.87 billion. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 1.20% and a negative net margin of 0.38%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post -0.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on UNFI shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on United Natural Foods from $15.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 7th. StockNews.com cut United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target (down previously from $15.00) on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Natural Foods currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Natural Foods

In other news, CAO Richard Eric Esper sold 4,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.35, for a total transaction of $49,656.25. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 32,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $373,017.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

About United Natural Foods

United Natural Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products.