United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $38.7778.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research upgraded United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on United Natural Foods from $27.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $40.00 price objective on United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 19th.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Natural Foods

In other news, Director James C. Pappas acquired 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.76 per share, for a total transaction of $506,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 192,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,487,929.28. The trade was a 8.47% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Louis Anthony Martin sold 9,439 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total transaction of $327,250.13. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 81,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,816,382.78. The trade was a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Natural Foods

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in UNFI. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in United Natural Foods by 4,266.7% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 60.7% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 84.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 32.0% during the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,563 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Natural Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:UNFI opened at $35.18 on Tuesday. United Natural Foods has a twelve month low of $20.78 and a twelve month high of $43.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a PE ratio of -21.19 and a beta of 0.86. The company’s 50 day moving average is $34.23 and its 200 day moving average is $32.85.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 2nd. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.91 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.32% and a positive return on equity of 4.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.16 EPS. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-2.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that United Natural Foods will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

About United Natural Foods

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.