Southeast Asset Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Southeast Asset Advisors LLC increased its position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 20.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Southeast Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $218,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CTAS. Twin Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cintas by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,124 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,859,000 after buying an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Cintas by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,118,479 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $935,146,000 after purchasing an additional 296,059 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in shares of Cintas by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 575,491 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $105,142,000 after purchasing an additional 30,811 shares in the last quarter. Wellspring Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellspring Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,171 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $214,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE boosted its stake in Cintas by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 17,188 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,140,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cintas Trading Down 7.1 %

NASDAQ CTAS opened at $190.33 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $76.81 billion, a PE ratio of 45.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.20. Cintas Co. has a 1-year low of $162.16 and a 1-year high of $228.12. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $201.48 and a 200-day moving average of $204.57. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.84 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Cintas’s payout ratio is 36.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Cintas from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $200.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Cintas in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They set a “sell” rating and a $161.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Cintas in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $210.58.

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.