Boston Research & Management Inc. Sells 500 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Boston Research & Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 21,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $3,891,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Cintas by 239.3% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 190 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Axiom Investors LLC DE lifted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Axiom Investors LLC DE now owns 910,992 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $166,438,000 after purchasing an additional 111,772 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Cintas in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,430,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Cintas by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 127,195 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $23,239,000 after purchasing an additional 3,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Cintas during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Cintas in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $161.00 price target for the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Cintas from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Cintas from $200.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Cintas in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $210.58.

Cintas Stock Performance

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $203.22 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $201.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $204.62. Cintas Co. has a 1 year low of $162.16 and a 1 year high of $228.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $82.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.60 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 17.23% and a return on equity of 40.62%. Cintas’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.84 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.11%.

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.