Cwm LLC Buys 3,477 Shares of Unifirst Corporation $UNF

Cwm LLC grew its stake in shares of Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,858 shares of the textile maker’s stock after buying an additional 3,477 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in Unifirst were worth $1,314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,974 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Unifirst by 13.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,069 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $882,000 after purchasing an additional 599 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Unifirst by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,966 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,560,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Unifirst by 37.3% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 105,331 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $18,328,000 after buying an additional 28,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearline Capital LP bought a new stake in Unifirst in the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,219,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Unifirst Trading Up 2.2%

UNF stock opened at $197.93 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.80 and a beta of 0.72. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $172.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $172.75. Unifirst Corporation has a 12-month low of $147.66 and a 12-month high of $243.70.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The textile maker reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.15 by $0.13. Unifirst had a return on equity of 7.11% and a net margin of 6.10%.The company had revenue of $614.45 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $607.02 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 earnings per share. Unifirst’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Unifirst has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.580-6.980 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Unifirst Corporation will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Unifirst Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.365 per share. This is a boost from Unifirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. Unifirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on UNF shares. UBS Group set a $182.00 price target on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Unifirst from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Unifirst from $152.00 to $145.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Unifirst has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $174.75.

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).