WBI Investments LLC Invests $500,000 in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

WBI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 714 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $500,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cintas in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cintas in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cintas in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in Cintas during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Cintas by 133.3% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 56 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CTAS shares. Baird R W cut shares of Cintas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Cintas from $775.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $775.00 price target (up previously from $750.00) on shares of Cintas in a research note on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com raised Cintas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Cintas from $667.00 to $798.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cintas has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $742.36.

Cintas Price Performance

NASDAQ:CTAS opened at $805.12 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $745.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $691.20. Cintas Co. has a 1-year low of $474.74 and a 1-year high of $807.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.69 billion, a PE ratio of 55.60, a P/E/G ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 1.31.

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 issued to shareholders after the market closes on Wednesday, September 11th.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $3.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.19. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 16.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. This represents a $6.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Cintas’s payout ratio is presently 43.09%.

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

Insider Activity at Cintas

In other news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $765.72, for a total value of $842,292.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 31,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,083,425.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 15.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Cintas 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.