Royal Bank of Canada Reiterates “Sector Perform” Rating for Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS)

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reissued by Royal Bank of Canada in a report released on Monday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $240.00 target price on the business services provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $215.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target suggests a potential upside of 8.00% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Cintas from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Cintas from $211.00 to $233.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Bank of America began coverage on Cintas in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Argus raised Cintas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Cintas from $184.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.81.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of CTAS stock opened at $222.22 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.58. Cintas has a fifty-two week low of $169.96 and a fifty-two week high of $229.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $213.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $205.59. The company has a market capitalization of $89.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.58, a PEG ratio of 3.98 and a beta of 1.08.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The business services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 40.62% and a net margin of 17.23%. The firm had revenue of $2.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Cintas will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cintas

In related news, COO Jim Rozakis sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $190.37, for a total transaction of $380,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 256,528 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,835,235.36. This trade represents a 0.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ronald W. Tysoe sold 8,521 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.96, for a total value of $1,780,548.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,647,979.84. This represents a 23.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 15.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cintas

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,256 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 1,321 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 2,412 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $441,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 17.4% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 338 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cintas by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.46% of the company’s stock.

About Cintas

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.