United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Issues Earnings Results

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.80 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.25% and a positive return on equity of 6.05%.

United Natural Foods Price Performance

UNFI opened at $51.64 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.73 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.05. United Natural Foods has a 52-week low of $20.78 and a 52-week high of $57.02.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Natural Foods

In other news, insider Danielle Benedict sold 4,807 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.00, for a total value of $249,964.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 98,470 shares in the company, valued at $5,120,440. This represents a 4.65% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 2.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Natural Foods

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNFI. Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new stake in United Natural Foods in the 4th quarter worth approximately $12,885,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in United Natural Foods by 40.4% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,300,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,922,000 after acquiring an additional 374,487 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in United Natural Foods by 912.4% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 398,946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,433,000 after buying an additional 359,541 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 198.4% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 439,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,811,000 after buying an additional 292,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,472,000. 87.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of United Natural Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of United Natural Foods from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.63.

United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc (NYSE: UNFI) is a leading distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods in North America. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest food distributors serving retail, foodservice and e-commerce customers.

UNFI’s core business centers on the procurement, warehousing and distribution of a broad portfolio of products, including fresh produce, groceries, frozen foods, dairy, bakery items, beverages, supplements and household essentials.