Zions Bancorporation National Association UT Makes New Investment in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Key Points

• Zions Bancorporation purchased a new stake in Cintas Corporation, acquiring 15,462 shares valued at approximately $3.18 million in the first quarter.
• Cintas reported a Q1 EPS of $1.09, exceeding analysts' estimates and indicating an 8% revenue growth year-over-year.
• The company has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.45 per share, marking a rise from the previous $0.39 and indicating a dividend yield of 0.8%.

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 15,462 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,178,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Cintas by 646.4% during the first quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 209 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Cintas during the first quarter worth $46,000. Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in Cintas in the first quarter valued at $46,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC purchased a new stake in Cintas in the first quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Cintas in the first quarter valued at $55,000. 63.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on Cintas from $240.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Cintas from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $171.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Cintas in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $239.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Cintas from $233.00 to $257.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Cintas from $213.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $224.54.

Insider Transactions at Cintas

In other news, Director Martin Mucci purchased 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $222.55 per share, with a total value of $267,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,621 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,303.55. The trade was a 84.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Todd M. Schneider sold 17,301 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.90, for a total value of $3,821,790.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 622,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $137,557,080.80. This trade represents a 2.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 15.00% of the company's stock.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock traded down $0.57 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $223.31. The company had a trading volume of 1,467,165 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,691,800. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $221.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.62. 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 $89.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.64, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.82.

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

Cintas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. This is a positive change from Cintas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Cintas's payout ratio is presently 35.37%.

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.