Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on UNF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Unifirst in a research report on Monday, July 14th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $175.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $197.00 price target on shares of Unifirst in a report on Monday, June 30th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Unifirst from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group set a $182.00 target price on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $174.75.

Unifirst Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $155.84 on Monday. Unifirst has a 12-month low of $154.00 and a 12-month high of $243.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.53 and a beta of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $169.00 and a 200 day moving average of $175.93.

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

Unifirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors 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. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. Unifirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Unifirst by 85,558.5% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 307,514 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $53,507,000 after buying an additional 307,155 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Unifirst in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,684,000. Voss Capital LP acquired a new stake in Unifirst during the 1st quarter worth $28,529,000. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Unifirst by 353.8% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 171,346 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $29,815,000 after acquiring an additional 133,588 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Unifirst by 90.0% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 191,539 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $36,051,000 after purchasing an additional 90,751 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Unifirst

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.