Handelsbanken Fonder AB Cuts Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB trimmed its holdings in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 15.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 114,179 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 20,635 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Cintas were worth $23,467,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CTAS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Cintas in the 4th quarter worth about $877,216,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Cintas by 19,644.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,263,091 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $465,133,000 after purchasing an additional 2,251,629 shares during the period. Winslow Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Cintas in the 4th quarter worth about $196,057,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Cintas in the 4th quarter worth about $96,282,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Cintas by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,067,037 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $743,048,000 after purchasing an additional 472,069 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cintas Stock Up 0.8%

CTAS traded up $1.85 during trading on Thursday, hitting $223.57. The stock had a trading volume of 1,466,910 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,702,938. The company has a market capitalization of $90.27 billion, a PE ratio of 53.90, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.08. Cintas Co. has a twelve month low of $170.93 and a twelve month high of $229.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.58. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $214.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.70.

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

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.70%. Cintas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cintas

In related news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total transaction of $1,780,548.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,647,979.84. This trade represents a 23.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.37, for a total transaction of $380,740.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly 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. 15.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Argus raised shares of Cintas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $240.00 target price (up from $215.00) on shares of Cintas in a research report on Monday. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Cintas in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Cintas from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cintas has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $215.81.

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.