Van ECK Associates Corp Grows Stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 9.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,364 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,264 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Cintas were worth $9,259,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CTAS. Columbus Macro LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cintas by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 1,453 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $871,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cintas by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 97 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in shares of Cintas by 1.0% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,899 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $913,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Cintas by 33.9% in the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 1.6% in the third quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $662.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.38. The firm has a market cap of $67.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 1.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $651.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $597.57. Cintas Co. has a one year low of $456.57 and a one year high of $704.84.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The business services provider reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.26. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 14.95 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Cintas from $700.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays upped their price target on Cintas from $630.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com upgraded Cintas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Cintas from $675.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Cintas from $660.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cintas presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $661.21.

Cintas Profile

Cintas Corporation provides 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.