Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) Raised to “Equal Weight” at Barclays

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) was upgraded by investment analysts at Barclays from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report issued on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $250.00 target price on the textile maker’s stock, up from their prior target price of $145.00. Barclays‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 3.91% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on UNF. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Unifirst from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Unifirst from $182.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $198.00 price target on shares of Unifirst in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Unifirst has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $207.25.

Unifirst Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of UNF opened at $260.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.41 and a beta of 0.69. Unifirst has a 12 month low of $147.66 and a 12 month high of $271.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $216.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $186.13.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The textile maker reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.16). Unifirst had a return on equity of 6.68% and a net margin of 5.70%.The business had revenue of $621.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $615.23 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Unifirst has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.580-6.980 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Unifirst will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Unifirst

In other Unifirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,464 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.54, for a total value of $347,758.56. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 6,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,534,745.94. This represents a 18.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Unifirst

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Unifirst by 7.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 27,152 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $4,724,000 after buying an additional 1,974 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Unifirst by 13.4% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $882,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Unifirst by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,966 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,560,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 37.3% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 105,331 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $18,328,000 after acquiring an additional 28,589 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 34,914 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $6,075,000 after acquiring an additional 1,326 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Unifirst

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).