Plato Investment Management Ltd Has $1.86 Million Stock Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Plato Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 326.1% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 9,024 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,906 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Cintas were worth $1,856,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CTAS. D Orazio & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in Cintas by 305.2% in the third quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 2,253 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 1,697 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd lifted its stake in Cintas by 372.3% in the third quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 5,261 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,083,000 after buying an additional 4,147 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 242.1% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 16,137 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,322,000 after acquiring an additional 11,420 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 527.9% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 55,635 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,454,000 after acquiring an additional 46,775 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 311.0% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 56,253 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $11,581,000 after acquiring an additional 42,567 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on CTAS. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Cintas in a report on Friday, August 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $167.50 price target for the company. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Cintas from $212.50 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cintas presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.63.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTAS opened at $217.05 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $220.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.79. Cintas Co. has a 52 week low of $136.50 and a 52 week high of $227.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.54 billion, a PE ratio of 54.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 1.32.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Cintas’s payout ratio is 39.39%.

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.