LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Makes New Investment in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,008,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Cintas by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 39,097 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $27,378,000 after buying an additional 838 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Cintas by 111.5% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,355 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,151,000 after purchasing an additional 3,878 shares in the last quarter. Bensler LLC lifted its stake in Cintas by 4.7% during the second quarter. Bensler LLC now owns 14,349 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,048,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,317,000 after purchasing an additional 2,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Journey Advisory Group LLC increased its position in shares of Cintas by 17.1% during the 2nd quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,442 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,511,000 after purchasing an additional 940 shares during the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $804.72 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $758.53 and a 200 day moving average of $701.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $81.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.57, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 1.32. Cintas Co. has a 52 week low of $474.74 and a 52 week high of $812.01.

Shares of Cintas are 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 announced 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. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 16.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a $1.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. This is a positive change from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.09%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CTAS has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays upped their target price on Cintas from $700.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered shares of Cintas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $725.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Citigroup cut Cintas from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $530.00 to $570.00 in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on Cintas from $775.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $742.36.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, 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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 15.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.