UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Shares Bought by Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) by 148.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,454 shares of the textile maker's stock after acquiring an additional 3,860 shares during the quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in UniFirst were worth $1,282,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in UniFirst by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 183 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in UniFirst by 1.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 4,231 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $726,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC lifted its position in UniFirst by 2.9% during the second quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 2,806 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC boosted its stake in UniFirst by 3.3% during the second quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $500,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in UniFirst by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 7,600 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,304,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on UNF. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com upgraded UniFirst from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $186.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total value of $619,079.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,357,105.84. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total value of $113,337.96. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,086,075. The trade was a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,294 shares of company stock valued at $2,546,632. Corporate insiders own 0.74% of the company's stock.

UniFirst Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNF traded down $3.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $202.84. 49,086 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 84,296. The firm has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40 and a beta of 0.82. UniFirst Co. has a 1 year low of $149.58 and a 1 year high of $208.20. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $192.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $180.53.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This is a boost from UniFirst's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. UniFirst's payout ratio is presently 16.99%.

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.