FTC to Sue to Block Cintas $5.5 Billion UniFirst Deal, Report Says

The Federal Trade Commission has indicated to uniform rental firm Cintas that it will sue to block its proposed $5.5 billion acquisition of rival UniFirst, Semafor reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The report is about reported intent. The FTC has not yet voted on whether to sue.

That distinction is the centre of this story. No lawsuit has been filed in the reporting, and no vote has been taken. What Semafor reported, and Reuters relayed, is that the commission has indicated to Cintas that it will sue. Readers should hold the story at that level. It is a signal from the regulator to one of the companies, reported by people familiar with the matter, not a court filing.

The concern is combined market share

FTC staff have privately expressed concerns about the companies combined market share, the report added. That concern goes to the shape of the deal itself. In March, Cintas, valued at $89.71 billion, agreed to buy smaller rival UniFirst in a cash and stock deal, combining two of North America's largest workwear and facility services providers. UniFirst has a market cap of $5.06 billion.

When the two largest names in a service combine, the staff question reported here is straightforward in its own terms. A combined company would hold the market share of both firms. The report does not add a market share figure, and this article does not add one either. It records only what was reported. Staff expressed concerns privately about the combined share, and the commission indicated it will sue to block the deal.

A pursuit that ran for years

The deal capped a multi year pursuit in which Cintas had made at least three formal approaches since 2022. The March agreement was not a first contact. It was the point at which a pursuit running since 2022, with at least three formal approaches, turned into an agreed cash and stock acquisition worth $5.5 billion.

That history matters for how the reported FTC step lands. Cintas spent years trying to buy UniFirst. It reached an agreement in March to combine two of North America's largest workwear and facility services providers. Now the regulator that has to clear the competitive side of the deal has, according to the report, indicated it will go to court to stop it, while its own vote on whether to sue has not yet happened.

Shares fall, and no party comments

Shares of UniFirst fell 8 percent on Tuesday, while Cintas was down about 5 percent. The falls were not equal. UniFirst, the smaller company being bought, fell further. Cintas, the buyer valued at $89.71 billion against UniFirst's $5.06 billion market cap, fell by less. The market reaction on Tuesday followed the Semafor report as relayed by Reuters.

Cintas, UniFirst and the FTC did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. That silence is part of the record. None of the three parties named in the report confirmed or denied it on the record to Reuters at the time of reporting. Until one of them speaks, or the commission votes, or a filing appears, the story stays where the reporting puts it. The FTC has indicated it will sue to block the $5.5 billion Cintas UniFirst deal, its staff are reported to be concerned about combined market share, and the formal step has not yet been taken.