Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) Short Interest Update

Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 3,860,000 shares, a drop of 20.1% from the February 13th total of 4,830,000 shares. Currently, 1.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,950,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Institutional Trading of Cintas

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Cintas by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 2,412 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $441,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Cintas by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. MGB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Cintas by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. MGB Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,248 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,328,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association raised its position in Cintas by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 5,380 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $983,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellspring Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Cintas by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellspring Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,171 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $214,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Cintas from $236.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Cintas from $185.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Cintas in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Cintas from $191.00 to $184.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Cintas from $209.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cintas currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $199.79.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:CTAS traded down $1.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $193.41. The company had a trading volume of 1,656,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,522,791. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $200.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $209.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market cap of $78.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.41. Cintas has a 52-week low of $155.89 and a 52-week high of $228.12.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cintas will post 4.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.59%.

Cintas Company 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.