Can UniFirst Rise Above Doubts After Mixed Q3 Results?

Unifirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) shares are trading lower on Wednesday.

The company reported third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $2.17, beating the analyst consensus estimate of $2.09.

Quarterly sales of $610.778 million (+1.2% year over year) missed the Street view of $614.51 million.

Also Read: US Stocks Mixed; UniFirst Shares Fall After Q3 Results

Core Laundry Operations reported a 0.9% year-over-year revenue increase, reaching $533.2 million for the quarter. Organic growth, excluding acquisitions and currency impacts, came in slightly higher at 1.1%.

Operating income was $48.2 million, a decrease of 0.6% year over year. Operating margin contracted slightly to 7.9% in the quarter, compared with 8% a year ago.

The company’s financial results for the third quarter included approximately $1 million of costs directly attributable to its customer relationship management computer system and enterprise resource planning projects. 

Adjusted EBITDA increased to $85.8 million compared to $84.8 million in the prior year, or 1.2%. Adjusted EBITDA margin remained flat on a year-over-year basis at 14.1%.

As of May 31, the company held $211.9 million in cash, equivalents, and short-term investments.

It repurchased $13.6 million of common stock during the third quarter, with $86.4 million still available under its current buyback authorization.

Outlook: UniFirst raised its fiscal year GAAP earnings per share guidance to a range of $7.60–$8.00, up from the prior $7.30–$7.70, compared with the $7.56 consensus estimate.

The company reaffirmed its sales outlook of $2.422 billion to $2.432 billion, compared with the $2.428 billion estimate.

Price Action: UNF shares are trading lower by 4.9% to $181.00 at last check Wednesday.

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