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

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

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. 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 report on Wednesday, October 1st. Zacks Research upgraded United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 30th. UBS Group upped their target price on United Natural Foods from $29.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $29.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 19th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Richard Eric Esper sold 4,261 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 37,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,236,166.52. This represents a 10.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Louis Anthony Martin sold 9,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total value of $327,250.13. Following the sale, the insider owned 81,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,382.78. This represents a 10.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNFI. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in United Natural Foods by 88.3% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 4,266.7% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 84.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 32.0% in 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

United Natural Foods stock opened at $35.04 on Tuesday. United Natural Foods has a fifty-two week low of $20.78 and a fifty-two week high of $43.29. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.11 and a beta of 0.86.

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

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.