Rockland Trust Co. Sells 4,969 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Rockland Trust Co. reduced its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 75.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,658 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 4,969 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $341,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LGT Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Cintas by 311.1% during the second quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 37 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cintas during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cintas during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cintas during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Cintas by 226.7% during 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 period. 63.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on CTAS shares. Redburn Atlantic began coverage on Cintas in a research report on Friday, August 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $167.50 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $212.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $199.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total value of $842,292.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 125,808 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,083,425.44. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 15.10% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ CTAS traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $204.91. The stock had a trading volume of 1,747,411 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,492,867. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $210.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $185.66. The firm has a market cap of $20.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.15, a P/E/G ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 1.32. Cintas Co. has a 52-week low of $119.86 and a 52-week high of $211.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 16.38% and a return on equity of 37.82%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.70 EPS. Analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 4.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Cuts Dividend

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

Cintas announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally 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.