Private Advisor Group LLC Acquires 22,235 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Private Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 273.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,361 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,235 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Cintas were worth $6,250,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 300.0% in the third quarter. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt now owns 1,630,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $335,552,000 after acquiring an additional 1,222,500 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 0.4% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 780,265 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $546,388,000 after acquiring an additional 3,471 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 6.3% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 638,038 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $438,402,000 after acquiring an additional 37,727 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 3,302.1% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 501,233 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $103,194,000 after acquiring an additional 486,500 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Cintas by 305.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 484,068 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $99,660,000 after acquiring an additional 364,659 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

Cintas Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of CTAS opened at $207.41 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.32, a PEG ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.53. Cintas Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.65 and a fifty-two week high of $215.37. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $216.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.02.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.10. Cintas had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 39.56%. The company had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, July 23rd that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the business services provider to repurchase up to 1.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on CTAS. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $212.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Baird R W cut shares of Cintas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $166.75 to $199.50 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $199.63.

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.