United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 84.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 8,039 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,682 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in United Natural Foods were worth $220,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of UNFI. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in United Natural Foods by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 931 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 372 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in United Natural Foods by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,027 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in United Natural Foods by 200.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 2,128 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in United Natural Foods during the third quarter worth $157,000. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new position in United Natural Foods during the third quarter worth $182,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.63% of the company’s stock.

United Natural Foods Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:UNFI opened at $31.68 on Monday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.58 and a 52-week high of $34.76. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.67. The company has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.18 and a beta of 0.62.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. United Natural Foods had a positive return on equity of 1.27% and a negative net margin of 0.30%. The business had revenue of $7.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.04) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on United Natural Foods from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on United Natural Foods from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price 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. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on United Natural Foods from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of United Natural Foods in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.40.

United Natural Foods 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.