1,076 Shares in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Purchased by Montecito Bank & Trust

Montecito Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,076 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTAS. Norden Group LLC increased its position in Cintas by 120.9% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 824 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in Cintas by 3.6% in the first quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,141,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in Cintas by 25.8% in the first quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 3,730 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,562,000 after purchasing an additional 764 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Cintas by 16.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,706 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,546,000 after purchasing an additional 519 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Cintas by 115.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 12,294 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $8,446,000 after purchasing an additional 6,589 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays raised their target price on Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on Cintas in a report on Friday, August 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $167.50 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $199.63.

Cintas Trading Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $219.52 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.43, a PEG ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $218.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $192.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.53. Cintas Co. has a 52 week low of $131.01 and a 52 week high of $219.87.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Cintas’s payout ratio is 39.39%.

Cintas announced that its board has approved a stock buyback 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 often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is 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.