Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Shares Bought by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 300.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 1,508 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,131 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $310,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CTAS. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its holdings in Cintas by 211.1% during the third quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,429,272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $499,236,000 after buying an additional 1,648,350 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 300.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 1,630,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $335,552,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222,500 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Cintas by 295.6% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 784,589 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $161,531,000 after acquiring an additional 586,271 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service grew its holdings in shares of Cintas by 362.8% in the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 736,193 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $151,567,000 after acquiring an additional 577,135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Cintas by 3,302.1% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 501,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $103,194,000 after purchasing an additional 486,500 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on CTAS shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Cintas from $212.50 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.63.

Cintas Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $207.56 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $83.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $217.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $192.31. Cintas Co. has a one year low of $128.92 and a one year high of $215.37.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.70 EPS. Analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.39%.

Cintas declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.