Filing Flows › United Natural Foods (UNFI) › Takeover & LBO
Is United Natural Foods (UNFI) a takeover target?
A leveraged buyout does not work for United Natural Foods on its latest figures: its EBITDA margin is only 1.6% ($514M on revenue of $31.2B), too thin to carry buyout debt. Historically 5.3% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (1.06× the average).
Why a leveraged buyout does not fit
United Natural Foods kept 1.6% of its revenue as EBITDA over the last 12 months ($514M on $31.2B). A margin that thin cannot carry the debt a leveraged buyout needs — a small dip in sales would leave nothing for interest — so the model gives no buyout price.
What a takeover could cost
Takeovers in its sector paid a median premium of 40% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 14.7% to 60.2%), according to the 20 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, United Natural Foods would cost about $64.41 a share, $4.0B for all its shares.
| Premium | % | Price a share | All shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low end (a quarter of deals paid less) | 14.7% | $52.77 | $3.3B |
| Median | 40% | $64.41 | $4.0B |
| High end (a quarter paid more) | 60.2% | $73.71 | $4.6B |
The odds, from history
Historically 5.3% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (1.06× the average). Its figures put it in decile 6 of 10 (10 = the most likely to be bought). The odds come from a model of every merger proxy, tender-offer response and going-private statement filed on EDGAR since 2011, set against each company's size, margins, debt, cash flow and growth the year before.
United Natural Foods' latest quarter
United Natural Foods, Q4 FY26: revenue $7.6B (-0.7% year over year), operating margin 0.9%, net earnings $35.0M, operating cash flow $197M. The chart follows the revenue to costs, profit and cash.
Questions
Is United Natural Foods being acquired?
No headline, 8-K or 13D about a sale is on file in the last year.
Could private equity buy United Natural Foods?
A leveraged buyout does not work for United Natural Foods on its latest figures: its EBITDA margin is only 1.6% ($514M on revenue of $31.2B), too thin to carry buyout debt. A margin that thin leaves almost nothing to pay interest with, so buyout debt does not fit.
What would a takeover of United Natural Foods cost?
Takeovers in its sector paid a median premium of 40% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 14.7% to 60.2%), according to the 20 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, United Natural Foods would cost about $64.41 a share, $4.0B for all its shares.
Updated Nov 8, 2026. Read automatically from SEC filings and public data; errors are possible. Not investment advice.