UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The textile maker reported $2.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.09, RTT News reports. UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 5.99%. The firm had revenue of $604.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $606.60 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.26 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. UniFirst updated its FY 2025 guidance to 6.790-7.190 EPS.

UniFirst Price Performance

UniFirst stock traded up $10.46 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $215.15. The stock had a trading volume of 601,364 shares, compared to its average volume of 392,733. UniFirst has a twelve month low of $149.58 and a twelve month high of $243.70. The firm has a market cap of $4.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.69 and a beta of 0.87. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $189.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $186.31.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. This is an increase from UniFirst's previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. UniFirst's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com upgraded UniFirst from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $186.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at UniFirst

In related news, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total transaction of $113,337.96. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,086,075. This trade represents a 9.45 % 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, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total value of $619,079.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,357,105.84. The trade was a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 13,294 shares of company stock valued at $2,546,632 in the last 90 days. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.