United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Shares Down 4.3% After Analyst Downgrade

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)’s share price fell 4.3% during trading on Monday after Zacks Research downgraded the stock from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating. The company traded as low as $48.22 and last traded at $48.6230. 368,939 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 48% from the average session volume of 702,845 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.83.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of United Natural Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $56.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price target on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $47.86.

Insider Activity

In other United Natural Foods news, insider Mark Bushway sold 10,000 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.56, for a total value of $515,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 51,119 shares in the company, valued at $2,635,695.64. This trade represents a 16.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Natural Foods

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. acquired a new position in United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of United Natural Foods in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 4,266.7% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in United Natural Foods in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in United Natural Foods by 84.2% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -73.55 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $49.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $45.36.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 9th. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.81 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.79 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.12% and a positive return on equity of 7.42%. The company’s revenue was down 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.400-2.600 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc (NYSE: UNFI) is a leading distributor of natural, organic and specialty foods in North America. Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the largest food distributors serving retail, foodservice and e-commerce customers.

UNFI’s core business centers on the procurement, warehousing and distribution of a broad portfolio of products, including fresh produce, groceries, frozen foods, dairy, bakery items, beverages, supplements and household essentials.