LPL Financial LLC Has $68.36 Million Stock Position in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC has increased its stake in Cintas Corporation by 4.2%, now holding 332,615 shares worth approximately $68.36 million.
• Cintas has declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.39 to $0.45 per share, reflecting a dividend yield of 0.81% and an annualized dividend of $1.80.
• The company reported Q2 earnings of $1.09 per share, surpassing analyst estimates, with a revenue increase of 8.0% year-over-year, totaling $2.67 billion.

LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 332,615 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 13,356 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.08% of Cintas worth $68,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Cintas by 19,644.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,263,091 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $465,133,000 after purchasing an additional 2,251,629 shares during the period. Winslow Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter valued at $196,057,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,067,037 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $743,048,000 after buying an additional 472,069 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Cintas by 26.7% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,228,609 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $407,163,000 after buying an additional 468,950 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cintas by 150.1% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 719,059 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $131,372,000 after buying an additional 431,570 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CTAS. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Cintas from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $196.00 to $221.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cintas from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Cintas in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Cintas in a research report on Monday, July 14th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $239.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $240.00 price objective (up from $215.00) on shares of Cintas in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cintas presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $224.54.

Insider Activity at Cintas

In other Cintas news, Director Martin Mucci purchased 1,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $222.55 per share, for a total transaction of $267,060.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 2,621 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $583,303.55. The trade was a 84.45% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 5,084 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.47, for a total value of $1,136,121.48. Following the sale, the director directly owned 21,945 shares in the company, valued at $4,904,049.15. This represents a 18.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 15.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Cintas Trading Down 0.5%

CTAS stock traded down $1.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $221.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,304,254 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,374,874. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $221.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $210.16. The company has a quick ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Cintas Corporation has a 52 week low of $180.78 and a 52 week high of $229.24. The stock has a market cap of $89.26 billion, a PE ratio of 50.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 1.03.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The business services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.63 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 17.53% and a return on equity of 41.21%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.99 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cintas Corporation will post 4.31 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This is an increase from Cintas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Cintas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.37%.

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.