The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 Sells 9,500 Shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) Stock

UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) major shareholder The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 sold 9,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.97, for a total value of $1,814,215.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 17,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,320,968.30. This trade represents a 35.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

UniFirst Stock Performance

NYSE UNF opened at $200.22 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.77 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $179.49. UniFirst Co. has a 52-week low of $149.58 and a 52-week high of $205.38.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. This is a positive change from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on UNF shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, UniFirst presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $186.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UniFirst

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 60.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 183 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its stake in UniFirst by 1,627.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 190 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in UniFirst by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 367 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 69.7% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 414 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 291.6% in the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 466 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

UniFirst Company Profile

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.