Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) Stock Rating Upgraded by Barclays

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) was upgraded by analysts at Barclays from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has a $250.00 price objective on the textile maker’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $145.00. Barclays‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 5.35% from the company’s current price.

UNF has been the subject of several other reports. Robert W. Baird set a $198.00 price objective on shares of Unifirst in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Unifirst from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Unifirst in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Unifirst from $182.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $207.25.

Unifirst Price Performance

Shares of Unifirst stock opened at $264.13 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $215.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $185.47. The stock has a market cap of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.94 and a beta of 0.69. Unifirst has a 1-year low of $147.66 and a 1-year high of $271.35.

Unifirst (NYSE:UNF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The textile maker reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $621.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $615.23 million. Unifirst had a return on equity of 6.68% and a net margin of 5.70%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. Unifirst has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.580-6.980 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Unifirst will post 7.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Unifirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 1,464 shares of Unifirst stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $237.54, for a total value of $347,758.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 6,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,534,745.94. The trade was a 18.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in Unifirst by 285.7% during the 2nd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 135 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Unifirst in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Unifirst by 474.1% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 155 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Unifirst in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Unifirst by 378.1% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 153 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

About Unifirst

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE: UNF) is a leading provider of customized uniform rental and facility service programs in North America and Europe. The company specializes in the rental, laundering and maintenance of workwear, corporate apparel and protective garments for a broad range of industries, including manufacturing, automotive, hospitality, healthcare and food processing. UniFirst also offers a suite of facility service products such as entrance mats, restroom supplies, wipers, mops and hygienic services designed to help customers maintain clean and safe environments.

In addition to its core uniform rental business, UniFirst has expanded its product portfolio to include safety and first-responder gear, flame-resistant clothing, high-visibility apparel and personal protective equipment (PPE).