Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Lowers Stock Position in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund reduced its stake in United Natural Foods, Inc. (NYSE:UNFI) by 11.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 33,679 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,402 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund owned about 0.06% of United Natural Foods worth $547,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. EMC Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of United Natural Foods by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 4,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 691 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the third quarter worth approximately $118,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Natural Foods in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $175,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB bought a new position in shares of United Natural Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at $186,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in United Natural Foods by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 12,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178 shares during the period. 87.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United Natural Foods

In other United Natural Foods news, CAO Richard Eric Esper sold 4,375 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.35, for a total transaction of $49,656.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 32,865 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $373,017.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price (down from $15.00) on shares of United Natural Foods in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of United Natural Foods from $15.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of United Natural Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Natural Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.40.

United Natural Foods Trading Down 3.3 %

Shares of United Natural Foods stock opened at $8.95 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $11.80 and a 200 day moving average of $14.19. United Natural Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $8.58 and a 52 week high of $28.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.53.

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 6th. The company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by $0.09. United Natural Foods had a negative net margin of 0.38% and a positive return on equity of 1.20%. The firm had revenue of $7.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.87 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that United Natural Foods, Inc. will post -0.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About United Natural Foods

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.