At US$173, Is UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF) Worth Looking At Closely?

UniFirst Corporation (NYSE:UNF), is not the largest company out there, but it received a lot of attention from a substantial price movement on the NYSE over the last few months, increasing to US$185 at one point, and dropping to the lows of US$162. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether UniFirst's current trading price of US$173 reflective of the actual value of the mid-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at UniFirst’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

See our latest analysis for UniFirst

Is UniFirst Still Cheap?

The share price seems sensible at the moment according to our price multiple model, where we compare the company's price-to-earnings ratio to the industry average. We’ve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there’s not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock’s ratio of 28.89x is currently trading slightly above its industry peers’ ratio of 27.05x, which means if you buy UniFirst today, you’d be paying a relatively sensible price for it. And if you believe UniFirst should be trading in this range, then there isn’t really any room for the share price grow beyond the levels of other industry peers over the long-term. Furthermore, UniFirst’s share price also seems relatively stable compared to the rest of the market, as indicated by its low beta. This may mean it is less likely for the stock to fall lower from natural market volatility, which suggests less opportunities to buy moving forward.

What does the future of UniFirst look like?

Future outlook is an important aspect when you’re looking at buying a stock, especially if you are an investor looking for growth in your portfolio. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. With profit expected to grow by 35% over the next couple of years, the future seems bright for UniFirst. It looks like higher cash flow is on the cards for the stock, which should feed into a higher share valuation.

What This Means For You

Are you a shareholder? UNF’s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around industry price multiples. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at UNF? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuate below the industry PE ratio?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping tabs on UNF, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around industry price multiples. However, the positive outlook is encouraging for UNF, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

It can be quite valuable to consider what analysts expect for UniFirst from their most recent forecasts. Luckily, you can check out what analysts are forecasting by clicking here.

If you are no longer interested in UniFirst, you can use our free platform to see our list of over 50 other stocks with a high growth potential.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.