B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. Raises Position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 256.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,952 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,405 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Cintas were worth $401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Cintas by 299.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,555,558 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,996,697,000 after purchasing an additional 10,910,285 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Cintas by 297.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,132 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,807,860,000 after buying an additional 6,571,128 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Cintas by 309.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,248,271 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,693,654,000 after acquiring an additional 6,235,052 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Cintas by 264.7% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,279,029 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $693,503,000 after acquiring an additional 2,379,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Cintas by 308.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,522,921 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $519,419,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904,926 shares during the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cintas Trading Down 10.6 %

Shares of Cintas stock opened at $182.79 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $214.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $202.86. Cintas Co. has a 1 year low of $138.39 and a 1 year high of $228.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $73.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.16, a PEG ratio of 4.15 and a beta of 1.33.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The business services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.08. Cintas had a return on equity of 39.56% and a net margin of 16.80%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.61 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.85%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. Cintas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on CTAS shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Cintas from $210.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 26th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Cintas from $219.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Cintas from $194.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cintas has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $200.77.

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.