Norges Bank Takes $31.13 Million Position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Norges Bank bought a new position in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 181,968 shares of the textile maker's stock, valued at approximately $31,133,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.98% of UniFirst as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of UniFirst by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 387,326 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $66,268,000 after acquiring an additional 20,056 shares during the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 4th quarter valued at $258,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in UniFirst by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,708,242 shares of the textile maker's stock worth $292,263,000 after purchasing an additional 6,393 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in UniFirst by 60.3% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 10,923 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $1,869,000 after buying an additional 4,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of UniFirst in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $514,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at UniFirst

In other news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,299 shares of UniFirst stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.95, for a total value of $274,024.05. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 6,455 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,361,682.25. This trade represents a 16.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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UniFirst Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE:UNF traded up $3.21 on Friday, hitting $173.20. 212,152 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 102,087. UniFirst Co. has a fifty-two week low of $149.58 and a fifty-two week high of $243.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $197.62 and a 200-day moving average of $197.09. The stock has a market cap of $3.22 billion, a PE ratio of 22.15 and a beta of 0.88.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 2nd. The textile maker reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $602.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $602.81 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The firm's revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

UniFirst declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, April 8th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the textile maker to purchase up to 3.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $152.00 price target (down from $180.00) on shares of UniFirst in a report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group raised their target price on UniFirst from $194.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of UniFirst from $218.00 to $197.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered UniFirst from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $180.00.

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.