Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 526,997 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $96,282,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Cintas by 299.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,555,558 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,996,697,000 after acquiring an additional 10,910,285 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Cintas by 297.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,132 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,807,860,000 after acquiring an additional 6,571,128 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cintas by 309.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,248,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,693,654,000 after acquiring an additional 6,235,052 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Cintas by 264.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,279,029 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $693,503,000 after acquiring an additional 2,379,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Cintas by 308.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,522,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $519,419,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904,926 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Cintas from $225.00 to $215.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Cintas from $209.00 to $200.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Cintas in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $161.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group cut their price objective on Cintas from $240.00 to $218.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Cintas from $236.00 to $211.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.79.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTAS opened at $203.06 on Friday. 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 50 day simple moving average of $198.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $209.23. The company has a market cap of $81.94 billion, a PE ratio of 48.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.41. Cintas Co. has a 12-month low of $154.15 and a 12-month high of $228.12.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.61 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. Cintas’s payout ratio is 37.59%.

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.