Ballast Advisors LLC Purchases 1,774 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Ballast Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 269.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,432 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares during the period. Ballast Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $501,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 211.1% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,429,272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $499,236,000 after purchasing an additional 1,648,350 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt lifted its holdings in Cintas by 300.0% during the third quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 1,630,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $335,552,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222,500 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its stake in Cintas by 295.6% in the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 784,589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $161,531,000 after acquiring an additional 586,271 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Cintas by 362.8% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 736,193 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $151,567,000 after purchasing an additional 577,135 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Cintas by 3,302.1% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 501,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $103,194,000 after purchasing an additional 486,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Stock Performance

CTAS stock traded up $5.67 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $214.66. 74,026 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,443,786. Cintas Co. has a one year low of $129.15 and a one year high of $215.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $218.11 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $192.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 39.56%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.70 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.39%.

Cintas announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CTAS shares. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Cintas from $194.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays lifted their target price on Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.63.

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.