Bridges Investment Management Inc. Raises Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 302.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 273,855 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 205,790 shares during the period. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $56,381,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its holdings in Cintas by 211.1% in the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,429,272 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $499,236,000 after acquiring an additional 1,648,350 shares during the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt grew its position in shares of Cintas by 300.0% in the third quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 1,630,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $335,552,000 after purchasing an additional 1,222,500 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 295.6% in the third quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 784,589 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $161,531,000 after purchasing an additional 586,271 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in Cintas by 0.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 780,265 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $546,388,000 after buying an additional 3,471 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its stake 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Cintas from $212.50 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Cintas from $212.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.63.

Cintas Trading Up 2.8 %

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $225.72 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.03 billion, a PE ratio of 57.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $219.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.39. Cintas Co. has a 52 week low of $131.24 and a 52 week high of $227.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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 company had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 39.56%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.39%.

Cintas declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.