Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $742.36.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CTAS. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Cintas to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Cintas from $790.00 to $874.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Cintas from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Cintas from $667.00 to $798.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Cintas from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $530.00 to $570.00 in a report on Friday, May 24th.

Insider Transactions at Cintas

In other news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 1,100 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $765.72, for a total transaction of $842,292.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 31,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,083,425.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cintas

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. LGT Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Cintas by 311.1% during the second quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 37 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in Cintas in the second quarter worth $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Cintas during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Cintas during the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 226.7% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 49 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cintas Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Cintas stock opened at $805.12 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $81.13 billion, a PE ratio of 55.60, a P/E/G ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 1.31. Cintas has a 1 year low of $474.74 and a 1 year high of $807.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $747.43 and a 200-day moving average price of $693.71.

Cintas’s stock is set to split on the morning of Thursday, September 12th. The 4-1 split was announced on Thursday, May 2nd. The newly issued shares will be payable to shareholders after the closing bell on Wednesday, September 11th.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $3.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.47 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The company’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cintas will post 16.64 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $1.56 dividend. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. This is a boost from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is 43.09%.

Cintas declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cintas Company Profile

Cintas Corporation engages in the provision of corporate identity uniforms and related business services primarily in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. It operates through Uniform Rental and Facility Services, First Aid and Safety Services, and All Other segments. The company rents and services uniforms and other garments, including flame resistant clothing, mats, mops and shop towels, and other ancillary items; and provides restroom cleaning services and supplies, as well as sells uniforms.