United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Price Target Raised to $28.00

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) had its price target lifted by equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group from $25.00 to $28.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 17.57% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Natural Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.40.

United Natural Foods Stock Up 6.3 %

United Natural Foods stock traded up $2.00 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $33.97. The stock had a trading volume of 499,280 shares, compared to its average volume of 545,463. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.04 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.64 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.48. United Natural Foods has a 1-year low of $8.58 and a 1-year high of $34.00.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.18. The business had revenue of $7.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.61 billion. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 1.27% and a negative net margin of 0.30%. United Natural Foods’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that United Natural Foods will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Natural Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 7.6% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 953 shares during the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 3,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 18.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 15,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 2,350 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 46.3% during the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 15,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 5,000 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 5.4% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 194,772 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,276,000 after buying an additional 9,916 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Company Profile

United Natural Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products.