Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Acquires 23,391 Shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. $UNFI

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC boosted its stake in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 34.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 90,719 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,391 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned about 0.15% of United Natural Foods worth $3,413,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter worth about $656,000. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,588,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at about $442,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in United Natural Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $364,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

Shares of UNFI stock opened at $37.27 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a PE ratio of -22.45 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $34.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $33.26. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $20.78 and a 52 week high of $43.29.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 2nd. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.16 earnings per share. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-2.300 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on UNFI shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $40.00 price target on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Zacks Research raised United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Natural Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James C. Pappas acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $33.30 per share, for a total transaction of $66,600.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 194,178 shares in the company, valued at $6,466,127.40. This trade represents a 1.04% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Louis Anthony Martin sold 9,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total transaction of $327,250.13. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 81,234 shares in the company, valued at $2,816,382.78. This trade represents a 10.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 2.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About United Natural Foods

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.