2,874 Shares in UniFirst Corporation $UNF Acquired by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,874 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $760,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of UniFirst by 7.8% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 27,152 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $4,724,000 after buying an additional 1,974 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in UniFirst by 13.4% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $882,000 after acquiring an additional 599 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in UniFirst by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,966 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,560,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in UniFirst by 37.3% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 105,331 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $18,328,000 after acquiring an additional 28,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in UniFirst by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 34,914 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $6,075,000 after acquiring an additional 1,326 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UniFirst Price Performance

Shares of NYSE UNF opened at $282.36 on Friday. UniFirst Corporation has a 1-year low of $147.66 and a 1-year high of $306.67. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $282.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $265.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.54 and a beta of 0.63.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The textile maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.84). The company had revenue of $634.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $627.66 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 6.44%. UniFirst’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that UniFirst Corporation will post 7.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.365 per share. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. UniFirst’s payout ratio is 23.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNF has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of UniFirst from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group set a $262.00 price objective on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $246.67.

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).