Martingale Asset Management L P Grows Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Martingale Asset Management L P increased its position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 148.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,188 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,439 shares during the quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P’s holdings in Cintas were worth $4,980,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in Cintas by 297.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,132 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,807,860,000 after buying an additional 6,571,128 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Cintas by 308.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,522,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $519,419,000 after buying an additional 1,904,926 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc lifted its position 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 during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its position in Cintas by 293.2% during the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 1,904,296 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $392,056,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419,975 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Cintas by 258.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,894,922 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $390,127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,365,825 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $225.79 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $212.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $198.87. The stock has a market cap of $91.06 billion, a PE ratio of 57.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 1.32. Cintas Co. has a 1 year low of $136.87 and a 1 year high of $228.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.53.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) 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 return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. Cintas’s 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. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on CTAS. 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. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Cintas from $212.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.63.

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.