United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Sets New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?
by Mitch Edgeman · The Markets DailyUnited Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI – Get Free Report)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $43.48 and last traded at $43.4690, with a volume of 182652 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $41.26.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several brokerages have commented on UNFI. Zacks Research downgraded United Natural Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of United Natural Foods from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $40.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Natural Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $43.63.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on UNFI
United Natural Foods Stock Up 3.9%
The stock has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.81 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.61.
United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 10th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.11. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 6.05% and a negative net margin of 0.25%.The company had revenue of $7.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. United Natural Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.300-2.700 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.
Insider Activity at United Natural Foods
In other United Natural Foods news, Director James C. Pappas acquired 15,000 shares of United Natural Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $33.76 per share, with a total value of $506,400.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 192,178 shares in the company, valued at $6,487,929.28. This trade represents a 8.47% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.40% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Trading of United Natural Foods
Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods during the third quarter worth $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 buying an additional 768 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in United Natural Foods during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 84.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,332 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About United Natural Foods
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.