WCM Investment Management LLC Has $11.67 Million Stock Holdings in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

WCM Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 38.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 68,215 shares of the textile maker’s stock after selling 42,431 shares during the quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC owned 0.37% of UniFirst worth $11,665,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Copeland Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 9.9% in the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 365,047 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $62,456,000 after purchasing an additional 32,860 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky acquired a new position in UniFirst during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of UniFirst by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 740 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of UniFirst by 1,373.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 280 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 261 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of UniFirst by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,337 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on UNF shares. StockNews.com cut UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of UniFirst from $190.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, UniFirst has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $197.50.

Insider Activity at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, major shareholder The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 sold 9,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.97, for a total transaction 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 represents a 35.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total transaction of $113,337.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,086,075. This trade represents a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,294 shares of company stock valued at $2,546,632 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Performance

Shares of UNF opened at $219.14 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $4.07 billion, a PE ratio of 28.02 and a beta of 0.89. UniFirst Co. has a 52-week low of $149.58 and a 52-week high of $243.70. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $201.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $194.19.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The textile maker reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $604.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $606.60 million. UniFirst had a net margin of 6.00% and a return on equity of 7.40%. UniFirst’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.26 EPS. Research analysts predict that UniFirst Co. will post 7.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

UniFirst Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.64%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.90%.

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.