Zacks: Brokerages Expect UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) to Announce $1.93 Earnings Per Share

Posted by on May 24th, 2022

Equities research analysts forecast that UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF – Get Rating) will post earnings per share (EPS) of $1.93 for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Two analysts have provided estimates for UniFirst’s earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is $1.87 and the highest is $1.98. UniFirst posted earnings per share of $2.21 in the same quarter last year, which indicates a negative year-over-year growth rate of 12.7%. The company is scheduled to report its next quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 1st.

On average, analysts expect that UniFirst will report full-year earnings of $6.91 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $6.90 to $6.92. For the next financial year, analysts forecast that the business will post earnings of $8.12 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $7.90 to $8.33. Zacks’ earnings per share calculations are a mean average based on a survey of analysts that follow UniFirst.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 30th. The textile maker reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.38). The firm had revenue of $486.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $481.09 million. UniFirst had a return on equity of 7.36% and a net margin of 6.77%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.71 earnings per share.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on UNF. Zacks Investment Research downgraded UniFirst from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 2nd. StockNews.com lowered UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on UniFirst from $213.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 18th. TheStreet lowered UniFirst from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered UniFirst from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.00.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of UniFirst during the 4th quarter worth approximately $801,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in UniFirst by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 721,312 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $153,365,000 after purchasing an additional 42,016 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P grew its holdings in UniFirst by 171.3% in the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 8,965 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $1,907,000 after buying an additional 5,660 shares in the last quarter. London Co. of Virginia increased its position in UniFirst by 25.9% during the 3rd quarter. London Co. of Virginia now owns 986,340 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $209,716,000 after buying an additional 202,715 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 33,651 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $7,080,000 after buying an additional 8,082 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.61% of the company’s stock.

Shares of NYSE:UNF traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $159.90. 66,838 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 69,442. The company has a market cap of $3.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62 and a beta of 0.99. UniFirst has a one year low of $156.04 and a one year high of $242.79. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $173.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.77.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 7th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. UniFirst’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.73%.

UniFirst Company Profile (Get Rating)

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.

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