Korea Investment CORP Trims Stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Korea Investment CORP lowered its holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 33.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 280,176 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 142,180 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.07% of Cintas worth $51,188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. bought a new stake in Cintas during the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 178.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,460 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $507,000 after acquiring an additional 1,576 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in Cintas by 311.3% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 436 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Cintas during the third quarter valued at about $59,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Cintas by 293.3% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 16,198 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,335,000 after purchasing an additional 12,079 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CTAS. Citigroup began coverage on Cintas in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $161.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Cintas from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Cintas in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Cintas from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $207.57.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $206.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.73, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $200.91 and a 200 day moving average of $208.87. Cintas Co. has a 52 week low of $162.16 and a 52 week high of $228.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.08. Cintas had a net margin of 17.23% and a return on equity of 40.62%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.60 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.84 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.11%.

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.