FTC Moves to Block Cintas Acquisition of UniFirst as Cintas Declares Quarterly Dividend

The Federal Trade Commission has told Cintas and UniFirst that it intends to sue to block their roughly $5 billion merger, according to sources cited by Semafor. The deal, announced on March 11, 2026, would have Cintas acquire UniFirst with UniFirst shareholders receiving $155.00 in cash and 0.7720 shares of Cintas stock per share. UniFirst shareholders approved the merger in June 2026, but the FTC subsequently issued a Second Request for information, and both companies certified substantial compliance with that request on October 2, 2026, entering a timing agreement with the agency around the same time.

The FTC's signaled legal challenge is a significant obstacle for a deal that would combine two of the largest uniform services companies in the United States. Cintas stock underperformed peers on Tuesday, October 27, and an independent DCF analysis published the same day estimated Cintas intrinsic value at $143 per share against a market price of $226, a premium of roughly 58%, even as the stock had risen 21.1% year-to-date ahead of the FTC news.

Separately, Cintas's board approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.52 per share, payable December 15, 2026, to shareholders of record as of November 13, 2026. The dividend extends Cintas's unbroken streak of annual dividend increases dating back to its initial public offering 43 years ago in 1983.