Vest Financial LLC Purchases 9,881 Shares of Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Vest Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 93.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,507 shares of the textile maker’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,881 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Unifirst were worth $3,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Unifirst by 285.7% in the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 135 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Unifirst in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Unifirst by 474.1% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 155 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Unifirst by 378.1% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 153 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Unifirst by 22.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 450 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on UNF. Zacks Research upgraded Unifirst from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Unifirst from $182.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Unifirst from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $198.00 price objective on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $181.00.

Unifirst Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Unifirst stock opened at $208.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.61 and a beta of 0.72. Unifirst Corporation has a 12-month low of $147.66 and a 12-month high of $231.73. The business’s 50 day moving average is $186.06 and its 200-day moving average is $174.86.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The textile maker reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.16). Unifirst had a net margin of 5.70% and a return on equity of 6.68%. The firm had revenue of $621.32 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $615.23 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Unifirst has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.580-6.980 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Unifirst Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Unifirst’s payout ratio is presently 19.31%.

Unifirst Company Profile

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).