Retirement Systems of Alabama Decreases Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its stake in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,222 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 381 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Cintas were worth $13,560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB increased its holdings in Cintas by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 16,100 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,941,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 4,082 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $746,000 after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Columbus Macro LLC increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 486.6% during the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 28,831 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,267,000 after buying an additional 23,916 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. raised its holdings in Cintas by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 3,167 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC grew its holdings in Cintas by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Optas LLC now owns 1,167 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cintas Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Cintas stock opened at $202.06 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $81.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.72, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 1.38. Cintas Co. has a 1 year low of $150.70 and a 1 year high of $228.12. The company’s fifty day moving average is $199.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $206.94.

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

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on CTAS. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Cintas from $240.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Cintas in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Cintas from $209.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Cintas from $185.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Cintas from $191.00 to $184.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $198.46.

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.