Atria Investments Inc Purchases 16,623 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Atria Investments Inc lifted its position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 291.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,623 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Cintas were worth $4,595,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its holdings in Cintas by 211.1% during the 3rd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,429,272 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $499,236,000 after acquiring an additional 1,648,350 shares in the last quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt boosted its stake in shares of Cintas by 300.0% during 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 Cintas by 295.6% during 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 buying an additional 586,271 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Cintas by 0.4% in 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 boosted its position in Cintas by 362.8% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 736,193 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $151,567,000 after acquiring an additional 577,135 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.63.

Cintas Stock Performance

CTAS opened at $224.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $219.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.63 billion, a PE ratio of 56.75, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Cintas Co. has a 12-month low of $132.65 and a 12-month high of $227.35.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 39.56%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

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

Cintas announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the business services provider to reacquire up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Cintas Company 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.