California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 20,208 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

California State Teachers Retirement System decreased its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 576,059 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 20,208 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.14% of Cintas worth $105,246,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sound Income Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Cintas by 136.8% in the fourth quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 180 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cintas in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on CTAS. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Cintas in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $161.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Cintas from $200.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Cintas in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 target price for the company. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered Cintas from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $171.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $213.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total transaction of $1,780,548.16. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,029 shares in the company, valued at $5,647,979.84. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Jim Rozakis sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.37, for a total value of $380,740.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 256,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,835,235.36. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 15.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Cintas Trading Up 1.0 %

CTAS stock traded up $2.00 during trading on Friday, hitting $211.55. The company had a trading volume of 1,373,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,700,252. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $201.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.39. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $164.93 and a 12 month high of $228.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market cap of $85.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.01, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.20.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.60 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.84 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Cintas's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.11%.

Cintas Company 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.