Cintas Corp. (CTAS): Robust F4Q results with organic growth acceleration and strong F2027 guide

Research evidence excerpt

Cintas Corp. (CTAS): Robust F4Q results with organic growth acceleration and strong F2027 guide

Goldman Sachs Cintas Corp. (CTAS)

customers. First aid & safety services revenue grew 13.2% y/y organically, above our

9.5% forecast. All other revenue increased 8.6% y/y organically, well above our 3.5%

forecast, with 10.7% growth in fire protection and a 4.0% decline in uniform direct sales.

EPS ahead of expectations. Operating margins expanded 80 bps y/y to 23.2%,

fractionally below our estimate of 23.3% but above consensus of 22.8%, including

$14mn of transaction expenses related to the pending UniFirst acquisition. EPS of $1.29

outperformed our forecast of $1.25 and consensus of $1.24.

F4Q 2026 Positives / Negatives

Positives:

n Organic growth accelerated in F4Q with strong F2027 revenue guide. Cintas

delivered healthy organic revenue growth of 8.4% y/y in F4Q, accelerating from 8.2%

in F3Q, and guided to F2027 reported revenue growth of 7.4-8.7% (8.1% midpoint)

excluding any contribution from M&A. CTAS is now consistently delivering organic

revenue growth in the 7-8%+ range, above pre-COVID levels of 6-7%, and exhibiting

defensive characteristics despite macro and labor market uncertainty. The company

has generated both positive revenue and EPS growth in 55 out of the past 57 years.

n Strength across all four major revenue growth drivers. CTAS is seeing strength

across its four primary revenue growth levers including healthy new business trends,

retention rates near all-time highs of ~95%+, pricing at or modestly above historical

levels of 2-3% and continued success cross-selling additional products and services

into the existing customer base. Approximately two-thirds of new rental customers

continue to convert from the no-programmer market, highlighting significant