United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened
by Michael Walen · The Markets DailyUnited Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI – Get Free Report)’s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $32.37 and traded as high as $35.25. United Natural Foods shares last traded at $35.04, with a volume of 689,894 shares changing hands.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of analysts recently issued reports on UNFI shares. Zacks Research upgraded United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on United Natural Foods from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $27.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, December 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Natural Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.78.
View Our Latest Research Report on United Natural Foods
United Natural Foods Price Performance
The company has a market cap of $2.14 billion, a PE ratio of -21.11 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $34.70 and its 200 day moving average is $32.44.
United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 2nd. The company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.17. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 4.35% and a negative net margin of 0.32%.The firm had revenue of $7.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.16 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.500-2.300 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Buying and Selling at United Natural Foods
In other news, Director James C. Pappas bought 15,000 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $33.76 per share, for a total transaction of $506,400.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 192,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,487,929.28. The trade was a 8.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Louis Anthony Martin sold 9,439 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.67, for a total value of $327,250.13. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 81,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,816,382.78. This represents a 10.41% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of United Natural Foods
A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $656,000. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the second quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in shares of United Natural Foods in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,588,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods in the second quarter worth approximately $442,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the second quarter worth approximately $364,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.63% of the company’s stock.
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.