Cerity Partners LLC Makes New Investment in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF)

Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new stake in UniFirst Co. (NYSE:UNF) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 51,698 shares of the textile maker’s stock, valued at approximately $10,270,000. Cerity Partners LLC owned 0.28% of UniFirst as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Citigroup Inc. grew its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 81.9% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 22,031 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $4,376,000 after buying an additional 9,918 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in UniFirst by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 229,749 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $45,640,000 after acquiring an additional 8,587 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in UniFirst by 97.8% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $568,000 after purchasing an additional 1,414 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in UniFirst by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,533 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $4,675,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of UniFirst by 16.5% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 367 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of UNF opened at $206.22 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $191.65 and a 200 day moving average of $180.25. The company has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54 and a beta of 0.82. 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 paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. This is a boost from UniFirst’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.33. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. UniFirst’s payout ratio is presently 16.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other UniFirst news, VP David Martin Katz sold 587 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,086,075. This represents a 9.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder The Ronald D. Croatti Trust – 1 sold 9,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.97, for a total value of $1,814,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,320,968.30. This represents a 35.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 13,294 shares of company stock valued at $2,546,632. 0.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on UNF. StockNews.com raised UniFirst from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of UniFirst from $199.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.25.

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.