FY2024 EPS Estimates for UniFirst Co. Lowered by Analyst (NYSE:UNF)

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) – Equities researchers at William Blair dropped their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for UniFirst in a research note issued on Thursday, March 28th. William Blair analyst T. Mulrooney now forecasts that the textile maker will post earnings per share of $7.44 for the year, down from their previous estimate of $7.56. The consensus estimate for UniFirst’s current full-year earnings is $6.98 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for UniFirst’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.96 EPS.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 3rd. The textile maker reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.20. UniFirst had a return on equity of 6.19% and a net margin of 4.92%. The firm had revenue of $593.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $589.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on UNF. Barclays raised their target price on UniFirst from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com cut UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 23rd. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of UniFirst in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on UniFirst from $184.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $177.75.

UniFirst Stock Performance

NYSE:UNF opened at $173.43 on Friday. UniFirst has a one year low of $150.50 and a one year high of $187.22. The stock has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a PE ratio of 28.38 and a beta of 0.82. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $170.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.15.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be given a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.60%.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In other news, EVP William Masters Ross sold 2,282 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.27, for a total transaction of $399,966.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 4,034 shares in the company, valued at $707,039.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.74% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 4.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 195,832 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $31,923,000 after purchasing an additional 8,734 shares during the period. Comerica Bank purchased a new position in UniFirst in the second quarter valued at $22,256,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 2.9% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 106,946 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $17,433,000 after purchasing an additional 3,023 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 62.1% in the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al now owns 36,782 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $5,996,000 after purchasing an additional 14,087 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 5.1% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 424,650 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $69,222,000 after purchasing an additional 20,708 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About UniFirst

UniFirst Corporation provides workplace uniforms and protective work wear clothing in the United States, Europe, and Canada. The company operates through U.S. and Canadian Rental and Cleaning, Manufacturing, Specialty Garments Rental and Cleaning, and First Aid segments. It designs, manufactures, personalizes, rents, cleans, delivers, and sells a range of uniforms and protective clothing, including shirts, pants, jackets, coveralls, lab coats, smocks, and aprons; and specialized protective wear, such as flame resistant and high visibility garments.