Seven Eight Capital LP Increases Stock Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Seven Eight Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 28.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 486 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Seven Eight Capital LP’s holdings in Cintas were worth $340,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. LGT Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cintas by 311.1% in the second quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 37 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. purchased a new position in Cintas in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cintas by 226.7% in the second quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 49 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on CTAS. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Cintas to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Cintas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $181.25 target price for the company. in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Robert W. Baird reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $193.75 price target (up from $187.50) on shares of Cintas in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Baird R W downgraded shares of Cintas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Cintas from $850.00 to $210.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $186.30.

Cintas Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ:CTAS opened at $204.16 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $206.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $182.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.71 billion, a PE ratio of 14.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 1.32. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $118.68 and a 12 month high of $209.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.52.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.05. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.83 EPS. Cintas’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 16.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.77%.

Cintas declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cintas

In other news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 4,400 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total transaction of $842,292.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 125,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,083,425.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 15.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.