Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) Stock Price Up 0.4%

Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)’s stock price rose 0.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $763.83 and last traded at $762.30. Approximately 39,245 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 372,506 shares. The stock had previously closed at $759.12.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CTAS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Cintas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $725.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Cintas to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Cintas from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Cintas from $775.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Cintas from $790.00 to $874.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $742.36.

Cintas Trading Down 0.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $77.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 1.31. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $727.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $679.29.

Shares of Cintas are going to split before the market opens on Thursday, September 12th. The 4-1 split was announced on Thursday, May 2nd. The newly minted shares will be distributed to shareholders after the market closes 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.47 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 16.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be paid a $1.56 dividend. This is an increase from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.82%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.09%.

Cintas declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Cintas

In related news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $765.72, for a total value of $842,292.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 31,452 shares in the company, valued at $24,083,425.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cintas

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 111.5% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,355 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,151,000 after acquiring an additional 3,878 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 19.8% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,317,000 after acquiring an additional 2,439 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the first quarter worth $37,658,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 329.0% during the second quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 1,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $910,000 after acquiring an additional 997 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the second quarter worth $1,292,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

About Cintas

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.