UniFirst Corporation (UNF) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.36 on September 25th

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) declared a quarterly dividend on Monday, July 13th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of 0.365 per share by the textile maker on Friday, September 25th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th.

UniFirst has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1%annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 7 consecutive years. UniFirst has a payout ratio of 16.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect UniFirst to earn $8.13 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.46 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 18.0%.

UniFirst Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:UNF opened at $275.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.42 and a beta of 0.63. UniFirst has a 52 week low of $147.66 and a 52 week high of $283.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $265.22 and a 200 day moving average of $245.81.

UniFirst (NYSE:UNF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 1st. The textile maker reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.84). UniFirst had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 6.44%. The company had revenue of $634.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $627.66 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that UniFirst will post 7.49 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of UniFirst

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its position in UniFirst by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 865,014 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $166,861,000 after buying an additional 75,524 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in UniFirst by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 787,418 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $151,895,000 after acquiring an additional 14,751 shares in the last quarter. Engine Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 640.5% during the fourth quarter. Engine Capital Management LP now owns 459,871 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $88,709,000 after acquiring an additional 397,772 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of UniFirst by 46.8% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 451,194 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $87,035,000 after acquiring an additional 143,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its holdings in shares of UniFirst by 164.2% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 367,786 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $70,946,000 after acquiring an additional 228,586 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

UniFirst Company Profile

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).