Empowered Funds LLC Has $7.69 Million Stock Position in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 44.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 281,713 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 86,941 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $7,694,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Advisors Preferred LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,637,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in United Natural Foods by 118.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 177,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,993,000 after purchasing an additional 96,341 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 352.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 108,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 84,257 shares during the period. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. acquired a new stake in United Natural Foods in the 3rd quarter worth $595,000. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,383,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,094,000 after purchasing an additional 34,522 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on UNFI shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.20.

United Natural Foods Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of UNFI opened at $30.30 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a PE ratio of -19.30 and a beta of 0.62. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $8.58 and a 1 year high of $32.20. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $27.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.52.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 1.27% and a negative net margin of 0.30%. The firm had revenue of $7.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.04) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.