Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Short Interest Update

Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,430,000 shares, a decline of 5.3% from the August 15th total of 1,510,000 shares. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 404,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Insider Activity

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. Insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cintas

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its position in Cintas by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,651 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Cintas by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,905 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,034,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Field & Main Bank increased its position in Cintas by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Cintas by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 448 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, TIAA Trust National Association increased its position in Cintas by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 1,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $954,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Baird R W lowered Cintas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Citigroup lowered Cintas from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $132.50 to $142.50 in a report on Friday, May 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on Cintas from $850.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 13th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Cintas from $212.50 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cintas presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $186.30.

Cintas Stock Up 1.2 %

CTAS opened at $203.74 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $206.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $181.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.74. Cintas has a one year low of $118.68 and a one year high of $209.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.32.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.05. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Cintas will post 16.64 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

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

Cintas declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to buy up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.