WBH Advisory Inc. Sells 23 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

WBH Advisory Inc. decreased its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,170 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 23 shares during the period. WBH Advisory Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $819,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Simplicity Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cintas by 117.7% in the 4th quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 3,224 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after acquiring an additional 1,743 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in Cintas in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,015,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Cintas by 91.2% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 48,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $29,315,000 after purchasing an additional 23,197 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its position in Cintas by 117.7% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 3,224 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,943,000 after buying an additional 1,743 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new stake in Cintas in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,658,000. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on CTAS. Citigroup downgraded Cintas from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $530.00 to $570.00 in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Cintas in a report on Friday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $670.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Cintas from $775.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Cintas from $700.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird restated a “neutral” rating and set a $775.00 price objective (up from $750.00) on shares of Cintas in a research report on Friday, July 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $742.92.

Cintas Price Performance

Shares of CTAS stock traded down $3.93 during trading on Friday, hitting $746.50. The company had a trading volume of 8,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 373,771. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $719.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $673.69. Cintas Co. has a one year low of $474.74 and a one year high of $773.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a current ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.06 and a beta of 1.31.

Shares of Cintas are set to split on Thursday, September 12th. The 4-1 split was announced on Thursday, May 2nd. The newly created shares will be payable to shareholders after the market closes on Wednesday, September 11th.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $3.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.80 by $0.19. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.33 earnings per share. Cintas’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 16.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.56 per share. This is a positive change from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.09%.

Cintas announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Cintas

In other Cintas news, Director Gerald S. Adolph sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $765.72, for a total transaction of $842,292.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 31,452 shares in the company, valued at $24,083,425.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 15.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Cintas

Cintas Corporation provides 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.