Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 232.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 380,478 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 266,044 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $78,333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position 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 Cintas by 300.0% during the third quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 1,630,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $335,552,000 after buying an additional 1,222,500 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Cintas by 211.6% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,140,595 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $234,826,000 after buying an additional 774,551 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in Cintas by 291.9% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 889,402 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $183,110,000 after purchasing an additional 662,431 shares during the period. Finally, Congress Asset Management Co. raised its position in 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Baird R W downgraded Cintas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Barclays lifted their target price on Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Cintas from $212.00 to $236.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.63.

Cintas Trading Down 0.5 %

CTAS opened at $223.62 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.47, a PEG ratio of 4.43 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $220.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.58. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $135.07 and a 12 month high of $227.35.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. Cintas’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.70 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.39%.

Cintas announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 23rd that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the business services provider to purchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are 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.