Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) PT Raised to $191.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $184.00 to $191.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an underweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

CTAS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Cintas in a report on Friday, August 9th. They issued a neutral rating and a $167.50 price objective on the stock. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Cintas from $194.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Cintas from $197.50 to $218.50 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $199.63.

Cintas Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CTAS opened at $202.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.53 billion, a PE ratio of 13.97, a P/E/G ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.32. Cintas has a fifty-two week low of $119.69 and a fifty-two week high of $211.57. The company has a fifty day moving average of $208.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $184.37.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.10. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.70 EPS. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Cintas will post 4.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to buy up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. Cintas’s payout ratio is currently 10.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 4,400 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total value of $842,292.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 125,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,083,425.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 15.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cintas

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CTAS. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,299,288 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,206,969,000 after purchasing an additional 112,361 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Cintas by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 780,265 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $546,388,000 after buying an additional 3,471 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Cintas by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 638,038 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $438,402,000 after buying an additional 37,727 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Cintas by 21.1% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 387,510 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $271,323,000 after buying an additional 67,440 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Cintas by 123.1% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 366,044 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,326,000 after acquiring an additional 201,955 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.