United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Research Coverage Started at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued a hold rating on the stock.

UNFI has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on United Natural Foods from $29.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $27.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.78.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

NYSE UNFI opened at $32.49 on Thursday. United Natural Foods has a fifty-two week low of $20.78 and a fifty-two week high of $43.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $35.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.57 and a beta of 0.86.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Richard Eric Esper sold 4,261 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.08, for a total value of $140,953.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 37,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,236,166.52. The trade was a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James C. Pappas acquired 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $33.76 per share, for a total transaction of $506,400.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 192,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,487,929.28. The trade was a 8.47% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of UNFI. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in United Natural Foods by 0.8% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,664,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,824,000 after purchasing an additional 28,119 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 5.5% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,746,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,307,000 after purchasing an additional 142,485 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 20.7% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,544,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,308,000 after purchasing an additional 436,680 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 2.0% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,424,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,203,000 after purchasing an additional 27,943 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 40.4% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,300,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,922,000 after purchasing an additional 374,487 shares during the period. 87.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.