Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Shares Sold by Stifel Financial Corp

Stifel Financial Corp lessened its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,342,369 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 39,764 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned approximately 0.33% of Cintas worth $245,254,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 28.4% in the fourth quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,563 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,199,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares during the last quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cintas by 121.8% during the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 11,545 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,109,000 after acquiring an additional 6,341 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 acquiring an additional 1,286,668 shares in the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 127,441 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $23,283,000 after acquiring an additional 1,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI grew its holdings in shares of Cintas by 292.7% in the fourth quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 5,482 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 4,086 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cintas Stock Performance

Cintas stock traded down $1.35 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $208.40. 1,172,829 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,694,972. Cintas Co. has a fifty-two week low of $162.16 and a fifty-two week high of $228.12. The firm's fifty day moving average is $201.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $204.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The company has a market capitalization of $84.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.20.

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

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Cintas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on CTAS. Argus upgraded shares of Cintas to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Cintas from $195.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group raised their price target on Cintas from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Cintas in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Cintas in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "sell" rating and a $161.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cintas presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $213.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Jim Rozakis sold 2,000 shares of Cintas 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 256,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at $48,835,235.36. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total transaction of $1,780,548.16. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,029 shares in the company, valued at $5,647,979.84. This trade represents a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 15.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Cintas 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.