Virtu Financial LLC Lowers Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Virtu Financial LLC reduced its position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,396 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 332 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $3,778,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alpha Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC now owns 389 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. lifted its holdings in Cintas by 74.1% during the second quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 2,463 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares in the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its position in shares of Cintas by 6.9% in the second quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 757 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $530,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the second quarter worth about $71,824,000. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 26.6% during the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 10,137 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $7,099,000 after purchasing an additional 2,127 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cintas Trading Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $204.95 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market cap of $20.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.15, a PEG ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $204.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.35. Cintas Co. has a one year low of $118.68 and a one year high of $209.12.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.05. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 16.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas declared that its Board of Directors has approved 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 repurchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.77%.

Insider Transactions at Cintas

In related news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total transaction of $842,292.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 125,808 shares in the company, valued at $24,083,425.44. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded Cintas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $181.25 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Cintas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Citigroup cut shares of Cintas from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and increased their target price for the company from $132.50 to $142.50 in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $197.50 to $218.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Two equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Cintas has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $185.41.

Cintas Profile

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.