Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Trims Position in Cintas Corporation $CTAS

Key Points

• Ascent Wealth Partners cut its stake in Cintas by 19.3% in Q4, selling 6,594 shares and ending the period with 27,604 shares valued at about $5.19 million.
• Cintas reported quarterly EPS of $1.24 (meeting estimates) and revenue of $2.84 billion, up 8.9% year‑over‑year, while sell‑side analysts project roughly 4.89 EPS for the full year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share (annualized $1.80, ~1.1% yield), with an ex‑dividend/record date of May 15 and a payment date of June 15.

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lessened its stake in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 19.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,604 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,594 shares during the period. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC's holdings in Cintas were worth $5,191,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in Cintas by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,268 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Cintas by 42.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new position in Cintas during the 2nd quarter valued at about $625,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its position in Cintas by 20.3% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 212,192 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,291,000 after purchasing an additional 35,781 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC increased its position in Cintas by 50.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 92,924 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $20,710,000 after purchasing an additional 31,068 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company's stock.

Cintas Price Performance

CTAS stock opened at $169.61 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $183.59 and a 200 day moving average of $187.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.86 billion, a PE ratio of 47.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Cintas Corporation has a 52 week low of $165.60 and a 52 week high of $229.24.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24. The company had revenue of $2.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.82 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 17.57% and a return on equity of 41.47%. Cintas's revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cintas Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Cintas's payout ratio is presently 50.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cintas news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 4,666 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.87, for a total transaction of $834,607.42. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 22,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,015,273.76. The trade was a 17.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 14.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CTAS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised shares of Cintas from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $250.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Argus raised shares of Cintas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Cintas from a "cautious" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $205.00 to $245.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cintas in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Cintas from $222.00 to $190.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $215.17.

Cintas Profile

Cintas Corporation NASDAQ: CTAS is a provider of business services and products focused on workplace appearance, safety and facility maintenance. The company is best known for its uniform rental and corporate apparel programs, which include rental, leasing and direct-purchase options, laundering and garment repair. Cintas markets its services to a wide range of end-users, including manufacturing, food service, healthcare, hospitality, retail and government customers.

Beyond uniforms, Cintas offers a suite of facility services and products designed to help organizations maintain clean, safe and compliant workplaces.

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