Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 758 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,269 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 758 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $7,997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cintas in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 91.2% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 48,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,315,000 after buying an additional 23,197 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 96.7% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,770 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,067,000 after buying an additional 870 shares during the period. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cintas in the fourth quarter valued at about $268,000. Finally, First American Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 25.8% in the fourth quarter. First American Trust FSB now owns 639 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $385,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CTAS. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Cintas from $675.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com raised Cintas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Cintas from $629.00 to $726.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Cintas from $526.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Cintas in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cintas presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $661.21.

Cintas Stock Down 0.9 %

CTAS stock opened at $662.44 on Friday. Cintas Co. has a twelve month low of $438.59 and a twelve month high of $704.84. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $642.18 and its 200-day moving average is $586.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.15 billion, a PE ratio of 45.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 1.27.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The business services provider reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.26. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 15.98%. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Cintas Co. will post 14.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cintas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 14th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.82%. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.29%.

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.