Cintas to Acquire UniFirst in $5.5 Billion Transaction

Cintas Corp. and UniFirst Corp. today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Cintas will acquire UniFirst for $310 per share in cash and stock, representing an enterprise value of approximately $5.5 billion.

The transaction brings together two family-founded companies with longstanding commitments to customer service and operational excellence. The combined company will deliver products and services to approximately 1.5 million business customers across North America. A news release noted that members of the Croatti family, Cynthia, Carol and Matthew Croatti, will retain an ownership position in the combined company.

“This agreement marks a critical step in realizing substantial value for shareholders and customers,” said Todd Schneider, president and CEO of Cintas. “For decades, Cintas and UniFirst have built their reputations on a shared commitment to service excellence and putting customers first. By combining, we will be better positioned to drive growth and deliver on efficiencies that will benefit our collective customers and employee-partners. We look forward to welcoming UniFirst team partners to Cintas as we deliver on our shared vision.”

Under the terms of the agreement, UniFirst shareholders will receive $155 in cash and 0.772 shares of Cintas’ stock for each UniFirst share that they own. This represents a combined value of $310 per share based on Cintas’ closing share price of $200.77 on March 9. There will be no separate or additional consideration for Class B shares.

The cash consideration will be funded with Cintas’ cash on hand, committed lines of credit and/or other available sources of financing, and is not subject to any contingencies. Cintas has secured fully committed bridge financing from Morgan Stanley Senior Funding Inc., KeyBank National Association and Wells Fargo Bank N.A.

Steven Sintros, UniFirst president and CEO, added that, “This announcement reflects the extraordinary dedication of our team partners to ‘Always Deliver’ for the customers and communities we serve. As we spent time with Todd and the Cintas leadership team, it became clear that there is a deep alignment in purpose and core priorities between our two companies, including a steadfast commitment to investing in our people and driving operational excellence. Bringing together these successful, family-founded businesses will create meaningful benefits for our people and communities, while advancing innovation for the benefit of our customers and the broader industry.”

The transaction has been unanimously approved by the Cintas and UniFirst Boards of Directors. Entities affiliated with the Croatti family, which control approximately two thirds of the voting power of UniFirst’s common stock and Class B common stock, voting together as a class, have entered into a voting support agreement under which they have agreed to vote their shares in favor of the transaction. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of calendar year 2026, subject to customary closing conditions, approval by UniFirst shareholders and the receipt of certain regulatory approvals.

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC is acting as financial adviser, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is serving as legal adviser and FGS Global is serving as strategic communications adviser to Cintas. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC are serving as financial advisers, Paul Hastings LLP is serving as legal adviser, and Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher is serving as strategic communications adviser to UniFirst.

A dedicated website providing ongoing information and resources about the transaction is available at www.CintasUniFirst.com. Click here to read the full news release.