Geode Capital Management LLC Has $69.40 Million Stock Holdings in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) by 1.2% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 349,298 shares of the textile maker’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,136 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in UniFirst were worth $69,401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in UNF. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 1,627.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 190 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in UniFirst by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 183 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in UniFirst by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 367 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in UniFirst during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $92,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in UniFirst during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

UNF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of UniFirst from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.25.

Insider Transactions at UniFirst

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.08, for a total value of $113,337.96. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,625 shares in the company, valued at $1,086,075. The trade was a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven S. Sintros sold 3,207 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.04, for a total value of $619,079.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 22,571 shares in the company, valued at $4,357,105.84. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 13,294 shares of company stock worth $2,546,632 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Stock Up 1.0 %

UNF stock opened at $179.13 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a PE ratio of 23.05 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50 day moving average of $192.75 and a 200-day moving average of $184.08. UniFirst Co. has a 12-month low of $149.58 and a 12-month high of $208.20.

UniFirst Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 6th. This is a positive change from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.02%.

About UniFirst

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.