Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Stock Holdings in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. reduced its stake in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 44.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,149 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 21,316 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $16,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CTAS. Quarry LP increased its stake in Cintas by 221.1% during the first quarter. Quarry LP now owns 61 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cintas by 33.9% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Cintas during the first quarter worth about $36,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Cintas by 66.7% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 85 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC increased its stake in Cintas by 2,050.0% during the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 86 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CTAS. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $525.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Cintas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $551.00 to $590.00 in a research report on Friday, December 8th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Cintas from $526.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on Cintas from $630.00 to $700.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Cintas from $540.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cintas currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $571.29.

Cintas Price Performance

CTAS stock opened at $685.64 on Thursday. Cintas Co. has a twelve month low of $436.54 and a twelve month high of $704.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.24, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $619.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $566.70. The company has a market capitalization of $69.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.76, a PEG ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 1.27.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The business services provider reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.58 by $0.26. Cintas had a return on equity of 36.78% and a net margin of 15.57%. The business had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Cintas Co. will post 14.57 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 15th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 14th. Cintas’s payout ratio is 39.19%.

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.