Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Grows Holdings in Cintas Corporation $CTAS

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 44.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 15,813 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,870 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $2,974,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of CTAS. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Cintas by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 1,268 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Cintas by 42.3% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL purchased a new stake in Cintas during the second quarter valued at about $625,000. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in Cintas by 20.3% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 212,192 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $47,291,000 after purchasing an additional 35,781 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in Cintas by 50.2% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 92,924 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $20,710,000 after purchasing an additional 31,068 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Trading Down 1.8%

CTAS stock opened at $166.97 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $66.80 billion, a PE ratio of 47.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.96. Cintas Corporation has a one year low of $165.46 and a one year high of $229.24. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $181.83 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.98.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The business services provider reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.24. The firm had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 17.57% and a return on equity of 41.47%. The business’s revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Cintas Corporation will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Cintas’s payout ratio is presently 50.85%.

Insider Activity at Cintas

In related news, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 4,666 shares of Cintas stock in a transaction on Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.87, for a total value of $834,607.42. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 22,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,015,273.76. The trade was a 17.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 14.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on CTAS. Argus upgraded Cintas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Citigroup lowered their price target on Cintas from $181.00 to $160.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Bank of America began coverage on Cintas in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Cintas from a “cautious” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $205.00 to $245.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Cintas in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cintas presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $215.17.

Cintas Company Profile

Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) is a provider of business services and products focused on workplace appearance, safety and facility maintenance. The company is best known for its uniform rental and corporate apparel programs, which include rental, leasing and direct-purchase options, laundering and garment repair. Cintas markets its services to a wide range of end-users, including manufacturing, food service, healthcare, hospitality, retail and government customers.

Beyond uniforms, Cintas offers a suite of facility services and products designed to help organizations maintain clean, safe and compliant workplaces.