Advisors Preferred LLC Buys Shares of 131,831 United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)

Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new position in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 131,831 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,637,000. Advisors Preferred LLC owned about 0.22% of United Natural Foods at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 1.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,383,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,094,000 after buying an additional 34,522 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Natural Foods by 1.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,358,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,852,000 after acquiring an additional 14,928 shares during the period. Hauser Brothers GmbH boosted its position in shares of United Natural Foods by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hauser Brothers GmbH now owns 912,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,340,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of United Natural Foods by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 194,772 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,276,000 after purchasing an additional 9,916 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 118.1% in 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 in the last quarter. 87.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Natural Foods Trading Down 3.7 %

Shares of NYSE:UNFI opened at $29.73 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.32. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $8.58 and a 52 week high of $32.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

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 analysts’ expectations of $7.61 billion. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.30% and a positive return on equity of 1.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.04) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

UNFI has been the subject of several research reports. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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 note on Friday, January 10th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of United Natural Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.20.

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.