Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Receives $197.30 Average Target Price from Analysts

Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $199.63.

Several research analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Cintas in a research note on Friday, August 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $167.50 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 4,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total value of $842,292.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 125,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,083,425.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cintas

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,299,288 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,206,969,000 after purchasing an additional 112,361 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of Cintas by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 780,265 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $546,388,000 after buying an additional 3,471 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 638,038 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $438,402,000 after acquiring an additional 37,727 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 387,510 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $271,323,000 after acquiring an additional 67,440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 123.1% in the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 366,044 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,326,000 after acquiring an additional 201,955 shares during the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cintas Trading Down 1.0 %

Cintas stock opened at $203.86 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $209.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $185.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Cintas has a 12 month low of $119.69 and a 12 month high of $211.57. The stock has a market cap of $20.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.32.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.70 earnings per share. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Cintas will post 4.16 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.77%.

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

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.