United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) Trading Down 5.5% – Here’s Why

United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) shares dropped 5.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $27.95 and last traded at $27.99. Approximately 807,811 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 17% from the average daily volume of 690,372 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.62.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

UNFI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Northcoast Research raised shares of United Natural Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $15.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of United Natural Foods from $16.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.20.

United Natural Foods Trading Down 5.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.37 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s 50 day moving average is $21.93 and its 200-day moving average is $16.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, December 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $7.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.61 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.36% and a positive return on equity of 0.54%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at United Natural Foods

In other United Natural Foods news, insider Danielle Benedict sold 9,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.10, for a total transaction of $200,005.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 88,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,949,617.80. This represents a 9.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of United Natural Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 43,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $500,000 after acquiring an additional 1,994 shares during the period. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 661.8% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 2,879 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 94,859 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,243,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 37,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after acquiring an additional 1,303 shares during the period. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. Keynote Financial Services LLC now owns 17,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 1,091 shares during the period. 87.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.