Howard Capital Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,709 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Cintas comprises 0.3% of Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $3,298,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CTAS. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 39,097 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $27,378,000 after buying an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 111.5% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,355 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,151,000 after buying an additional 3,878 shares during the last quarter. Bensler LLC lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bensler LLC now owns 14,349 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,048,000 after buying an additional 646 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Cintas by 19.8% during the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 14,733 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,317,000 after buying an additional 2,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Milestone Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cintas during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,318,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on Cintas from $775.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Cintas from $667.00 to $798.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Cintas from $575.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Barclays boosted their price objective on 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 reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $775.00 price objective (up from $750.00) on shares of Cintas in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $742.36.

Insider Transactions at Cintas

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

Cintas Price Performance

Shares of Cintas stock opened at $781.90 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.33 billion, a PE ratio of 54.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 1.31. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $756.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $698.93. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $474.74 and a 12 month high of $812.01.

Shares of Cintas are going to split on the morning of 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The business services provider reported $3.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.80 by $0.19. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.82% and a net margin of 16.38%. The business had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.33 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 16.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a $1.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $6.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is a positive change from Cintas’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.09%.

Cintas declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program 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 purchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.