PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Buys 964,698 Shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cintas Co. (NASDAQ:CTAS - Free Report) by 299.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,286,525 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 964,698 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. owned 0.32% of Cintas worth $264,870,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CTAS. LGT Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Cintas by 311.1% in the 2nd quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC now owns 37 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cintas by 341.4% in the third quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 128 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its position in shares of Cintas by 433.3% in the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 128 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. bought a new stake in Cintas during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC grew its position in Cintas by 495.7% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 137 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. 63.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on CTAS. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Cintas from $170.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Cintas from $194.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Cintas from $184.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Cintas from $730.00 to $200.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Cintas from $181.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cintas has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $199.63.

Cintas Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:CTAS traded up $1.77 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $217.97. 1,231,473 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,450,172. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.92, a PEG ratio of 4.24 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. The company has a fifty day moving average of $221.79 and a 200 day moving average of $196.06. Cintas Co. has a 12 month low of $136.50 and a 12 month high of $227.35.

Cintas (NASDAQ:CTAS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The business services provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.49 billion. Cintas had a net margin of 16.80% and a return on equity of 39.56%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.70 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Cintas Co. will post 4.23 EPS for the current year.

Cintas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Cintas's dividend payout ratio is currently 39.39%.

Cintas announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, July 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the business services provider to buy up to 1.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.