Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 504 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,525 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 504 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $14,179,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barr E S & Co. grew its holdings in Cintas by 24.2% during the second quarter. Barr E S & Co. now owns 1,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $510,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Shelton Capital Management grew its holdings in Cintas by 4.1% during the second quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 8,911 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,429,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department grew its holdings in Cintas by 0.7% during the second quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 5,616 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,792,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Cintas by 124.8% during the second quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 227 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $113,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Cintas by 1.9% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 40,495 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $20,061,000 after buying an additional 747 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CTAS shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Cintas from $521.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $525.00 price objective on shares of Cintas in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Cintas from $580.00 to $565.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Cintas from $524.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Cintas from a “buy” rating to a “conviction-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $534.40.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CTAS traded down $5.47 during trading on Friday, reaching $547.97. 344,269 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 370,743. The company has a 50-day moving average of $509.49 and a 200-day moving average of $494.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 2.56 and a quick ratio of 2.13. Cintas Co. has a 52-week low of $423.06 and a 52-week high of $557.08.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 26th. The business services provider reported $3.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.67 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 36.82% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. Analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 14th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.99%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Melanie W. Barstad sold 1,968 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.17, for a total transaction of $1,011,886.56. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,213,562.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible 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.