Cintas Corporation $CTAS Shares Purchased by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 63.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 733,628 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 285,289 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Cintas were worth $137,973,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in Cintas by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,058 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $951,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Cintas by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC now owns 1,288 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in Cintas by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 4,381 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $824,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in Cintas by 4.8% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 1,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Cintas by 2.8% in the second quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 2,287 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $510,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 4,666 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.87, for a total value of $834,607.42. Following the sale, the director directly owned 22,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,015,273.76. This trade represents a 17.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 14.90% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Price Performance

NASDAQ:CTAS opened at $171.26 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $172.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $184.83. Cintas Corporation has a 52 week low of $161.16 and a 52 week high of $229.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.94.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.24. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 41.47% and a net margin of 17.57%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Cintas Corporation will post 4.89 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on CTAS. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Cintas in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Cintas from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $250.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Cintas from $181.00 to $160.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Cintas from $222.00 to $190.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Cintas in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $215.17.

Cintas Company Profile

Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) is a provider of business services and products focused on workplace appearance, safety and facility maintenance. The company is best known for its uniform rental and corporate apparel programs, which include rental, leasing and direct-purchase options, laundering and garment repair. Cintas markets its services to a wide range of end-users, including manufacturing, food service, healthcare, hospitality, retail and government customers.

Beyond uniforms, Cintas offers a suite of facility services and products designed to help organizations maintain clean, safe and compliant workplaces.