Hancock Whitney Corp Raises Stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Hancock Whitney Corp boosted its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 17.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 5,331 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 805 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Cintas were worth $974,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of CTAS. Sound Income Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cintas during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Cintas in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Cintas by 136.8% in the fourth quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 180 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cintas during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of CTAS opened at $208.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.58. Cintas Co. has a fifty-two week low of $162.16 and a fifty-two week high of $228.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $201.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.37. The firm has a market cap of $84.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.25, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.20.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.60 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is 36.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total transaction of $1,780,548.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,647,979.84. The trade was a 23.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Jim Rozakis sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.37, for a total value of $380,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 256,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,835,235.36. The trade was a 0.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 15.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Cintas from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Argus upgraded shares of Cintas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $215.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Cintas from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on Cintas in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $161.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $213.62.

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.