Mount Lucas Management LP Acquires 4,496 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Mount Lucas Management LP raised its stake in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 119.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,268 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,496 shares during the period. Mount Lucas Management LP’s holdings in Cintas were worth $1,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cintas by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,651 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Cintas by 0.5% in the second quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,905 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,034,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Field & Main Bank increased its position in Cintas by 25.0% in the second quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Cintas by 3.7% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 448 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TIAA Trust National Association lifted its position in Cintas by 1.2% during the second quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 1,363 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $954,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of CTAS opened at $215.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.34, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $221.49 and a 200 day moving average of $195.50. Cintas Co. has a 1-year low of $136.50 and a 1-year high of $227.35.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. Cintas’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.70 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current year.

Cintas announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Cintas from $194.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cintas has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.