United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) Stake Raised by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 1.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,358,340 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,928 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $22,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in UNFI. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,584 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 716 shares during the period. Creative Planning raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 953 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 85.7% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 3,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 18.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 15,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 2,350 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 46.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 15,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

NYSE:UNFI opened at $26.91 on Friday. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 12-month low of $8.58 and a 12-month high of $32.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 billion, a PE ratio of -17.14 and a beta of 0.64. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $23.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.08.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.18. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.30% and a positive return on equity of 1.27%. The firm had revenue of $7.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.04) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNFI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $16.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of United Natural Foods from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of United Natural Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $22.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Natural Foods news, insider Danielle Benedict sold 9,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.10, for a total transaction of $200,005.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 88,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,949,617.80. This represents a 9.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

About United Natural Foods

United Natural Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products.