Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Hold" from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $213.88.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on CTAS. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Cintas in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $161.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic lowered shares of Cintas from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $171.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Argus raised shares of Cintas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Cintas from $195.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Cintas from $200.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cintas

In related news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total value of $1,780,548.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 27,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,647,979.84. This represents a 23.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Jim Rozakis sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $190.37, for a total transaction of $380,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 256,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,835,235.36. This trade represents a 0.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 15.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cintas

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Cintas by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,228,609 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $407,163,000 after purchasing an additional 468,950 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 137.5% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,222,527 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $457,574,000 after buying an additional 1,286,668 shares during the period. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter worth $284,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in Cintas by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 170,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,092,000 after purchasing an additional 18,620 shares during the period. Finally, Thompson Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Cintas during the fourth quarter worth about $512,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company's stock.

Cintas Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTAS traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $226.90. 1,285,634 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,691,414. The company has a market cap of $91.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.09. Cintas has a 12-month low of $169.46 and a 12-month high of $228.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $211.89 and a 200 day moving average of $205.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

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

Cintas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Cintas's dividend payout ratio is 36.11%.

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.