Horizon Investments LLC Boosts Stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Horizon Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,090 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $1,113,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CTAS. State Street Corp boosted its position in Cintas by 299.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,555,558 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,996,697,000 after purchasing an additional 10,910,285 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake 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 worth $1,807,860,000 after purchasing an additional 6,571,128 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 6,235,052 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Cintas by 264.7% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,279,029 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $693,503,000 after buying an additional 2,379,932 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Cintas by 308.2% during the third 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 during the period. 63.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on CTAS. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Cintas from $191.00 to $184.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup started coverage on Cintas in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They set a “sell” rating and a $161.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Cintas in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Cintas from $185.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Cintas from $209.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $199.79.

Cintas Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $196.37 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $200.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $209.02. Cintas Co. has a twelve month low of $156.83 and a twelve month high of $228.12. The company has a market capitalization of $79.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.35, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.41.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.61 EPS. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.59%.

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.