CINCINNATI — Cintas Corp. reports it submitted a proposal to the Board of Directors of UniFirst Corp. to acquire all outstanding common and class B shares of UniFirst for $275 per share in cash.
The proposal, which was delivered to the UniFirst Board on Dec. 12, implies a total value for UniFirst of approximately $5.2 billion and offers UniFirst shareholders a 64% premium to their company’s 90-day average closing price as of Dec. 11.
UniFirst confirmed it received the unsolicited, non-binding proposal from Cintas.
Upon receipt of Cintas’ proposal, the UniFirst Board of Directors engaged independent financial and legal advisers. Consistent with its fiduciary duties and in consultation with its advisers — as communicated to Cintas — UniFirst says its Board is carefully reviewing and evaluating the proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interests of the company, its shareholders and other stakeholders.
Cintas offered a similar proposal to UniFirst in November 2024.
Todd Schneider, president and CEO of Cintas, says, “We remain unwavering in our conviction that combining Cintas and UniFirst would deliver considerable benefits for customers, employee-partners and shareholders. Accordingly, we have reiterated our compelling $275 per share all-cash offer to the UniFirst Board and are reaffirming our commitment to move swiftly to complete a transaction.
“Recent market commentary confirms that many UniFirst shareholders, including several of the company’s largest institutional investors, recognize the value that a combination would deliver and share our belief that we are stronger together than we are apart.
“We invite the UniFirst Board to engage immediately in collaborative discussions to reach a definitive agreement which we are confident will unlock new opportunities for growth, deliver even greater capabilities and offerings to our collective customer bases, and build on the strong legacy of both organizations.”
Cintas says the combined company would provide innovative products and outstanding service to well over 1 million business customers across the United States and Canada.
UniFirst does not intend to comment further on Cintas’ proposal until the Board has completed its review. UniFirst shareholders do not need to take any action at this time, the company says.
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