California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 5,014 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

California Public Employees Retirement System cut its position in Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 161,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 5,014 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.16% of Cintas worth $97,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Columbus Macro LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 1,453 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $871,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 97 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 1.0% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 1,899 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $913,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 33.9% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 1.6% during the third quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 1,338 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CTAS shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cintas from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $630.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Cintas from $675.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Cintas from $673.00 to $765.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Cintas from $660.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $661.21.

Cintas Stock Performance

Shares of Cintas stock opened at $664.13 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $646.30 and a 200 day moving average of $591.73. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $438.59 and a 12 month high of $704.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $67.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 2.03.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The business services provider reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.58 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $2.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.39 billion. Cintas had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 15.98%. Cintas’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.14 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cintas Co. will post 14.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 15th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 14th. Cintas’s 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.