United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wells Fargo & Company

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $56.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $40.00. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 21.82% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on UNFI. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen raised United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Zacks Research cut United Natural Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Friday, January 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.63.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

Shares of UNFI stock opened at $45.97 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $2.79 billion, a PE ratio of -35.36 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $39.00 and a 200-day moving average of $36.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 0.52. United Natural Foods has a one year low of $20.78 and a one year high of $47.58.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 10th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.11. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.25% and a positive return on equity of 6.05%. The business had revenue of $7.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. United Natural Foods’s quarterly revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.300-2.700 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Natural Foods will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at United Natural Foods

In related news, Director James C. Pappas acquired 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $33.30 per share, with a total value of $66,600.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 194,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,466,127.40. The trade was a 1.04% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNFI. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 13,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. Optimize Financial Inc grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 20,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $706,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Arax Advisory Partners grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 37.4% during the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 1,102 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC raised its position in United Natural Foods by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 28,948 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,089,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

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.