James Pappas Acquires 15,000 Shares of United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Stock

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) Director James Pappas purchased 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.76 per share, for a total transaction of $506,400.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 192,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,487,929.28. The trade was a 8.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

United Natural Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNFI opened at $33.28 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The business has a 50-day moving average of $35.20 and a 200-day moving average of $31.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.05 and a beta of 0.86. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.78 and a fifty-two week high of $43.29.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $7.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.91 billion. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 4.35% and a negative net margin of 0.32%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.16 earnings per share. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-2.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of United Natural Foods

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new position in United Natural Foods in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 4,266.7% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 88.3% in the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in United Natural Foods by 84.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 32.0% in the 3rd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,563 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Natural Foods News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting United Natural Foods this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director James Pappas bought additional UNFI shares (15,000 on Jan 2 and 2,000 on Jan 5), signaling management confidence and giving tactical support to the stock. James Pappas Acquires 2,000 Shares of United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary and recent results provide upside catalysts: UNFI beat EPS estimates last quarter and set FY2026 guidance of $1.50–$2.30, while several firms have raised price targets or kept constructive ratings — supporting a recovery narrative. Assessing United Natural Foods (UNFI) Valuation After Recent Share Price Pullback And Margin Recovery Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: UNFI appears on a Zacks screen of “highly efficient” stocks, highlighting improving profitability ratios versus peers — a data point investors may use to justify buying on the pullback. 5 Highly Efficient Stocks That Stand Out on Key Profitability Ratios
• Neutral Sentiment: Social and retail chatter has picked up following the insider buys, fueling debate on valuation and margin trajectory; this increases short-term interest but doesn’t change fundamentals immediately. United Natural Foods, Inc. Stock (UNFI) Opinions on Insider Purchase
• Neutral Sentiment: UNFI was mentioned in broader hedge-fund/market roundups—useful context but not a direct catalyst. Hedge Fund and Insider Trading News
• Negative Sentiment: Top-line pressure: recent quarter revenue was slightly below some estimates and YoY revenue trends remain weak; UNFI still reports a small negative net margin and carries leverage, which are risk factors for downside if margins don’t recover. United Natural Foods, Inc. Stock (UNFI) Opinions on Insider Purchase

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on UNFI. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $29.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Roth Capital reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on United Natural Foods from $27.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on United Natural Foods from $29.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Natural Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.00.

United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc (NYSE: UNFI) is a leading distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods in North America. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest food distributors serving retail, foodservice and e-commerce customers.

UNFI’s core business centers on the procurement, warehousing and distribution of a broad portfolio of products, including fresh produce, groceries, frozen foods, dairy, bakery items, beverages, supplements and household essentials.