Copeland Capital Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Copeland Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 311,996 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 17,560 shares during the quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC owned 1.68% of Unifirst worth $52,163,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Comerica Bank raised its position in Unifirst by 55.1% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 16,153 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $2,811,000 after buying an additional 5,739 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Unifirst by 7.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 27,152 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $4,724,000 after acquiring an additional 1,974 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Unifirst by 321.2% in the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 35,157 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $6,117,000 after acquiring an additional 26,811 shares during the period. Troluce Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Unifirst during the first quarter valued at approximately $530,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Unifirst by 13.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $882,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unifirst Stock Performance

NYSE:UNF opened at $196.87 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $172.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 24.67 and a beta of 0.76. Unifirst Corporation has a 52-week low of $147.66 and a 52-week high of $243.70.

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

Unifirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th will be given a $0.365 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 5th. This is an increase from Unifirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Unifirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on UNF. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised Unifirst from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. UBS Group set a $182.00 price objective on Unifirst in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Unifirst from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $174.75.

Unifirst Company Profile

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a leading provider of customized uniform rental and facility service programs in North America and Europe. The company specializes in the rental, laundering and maintenance of workwear, corporate apparel and protective garments for a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, hospitality, healthcare and food processing. UniFirst also offers a suite of facility service products such as entrance mats, restroom supplies, wipers, mops and hygienic services designed to help customers maintain clean and safe environments.

In addition to its core uniform rental business, UniFirst has expanded its product portfolio to include safety and first-responder gear, flame-resistant clothing, high-visibility apparel and personal protective equipment (PPE).