Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $198.46.

A number of research firms have recently commented on CTAS. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Cintas from $185.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Cintas from $191.00 to $184.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Cintas from $236.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Cintas from $240.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Cintas in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

Cintas Stock Performance

NASDAQ:CTAS opened at $198.56 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.13 billion, a PE ratio of 47.87, a PEG ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 1.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $202.36 and its 200 day moving average is $206.39. Cintas has a fifty-two week low of $149.70 and a fifty-two week high of $228.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.56 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 17.23% and a return on equity of 40.62%. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.61 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cintas will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.61%.

Institutional Trading of Cintas

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Cintas by 299.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,555,558 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,996,697,000 after acquiring an additional 10,910,285 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 297.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,807,860,000 after purchasing an additional 6,571,128 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 309.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,248,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,693,654,000 after purchasing an additional 6,235,052 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Cintas by 264.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,279,029 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $693,503,000 after buying an additional 2,379,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Cintas by 308.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,522,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $519,419,000 after buying an additional 1,904,926 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.