CTAS vs CXW vs UNF Stock Comparison

Cintas, CoreCivic and Unifirst Prices as of Nov 4, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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CTAS Cintas Corp
$229.03 +17.2% 1M +24.4% 1Y
Market cap
$91.68B
P/E
44.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$11.56B
Div. yield
0.01%
Facility Services Industrials
6 wins
CXW CoreCivic, Inc.
$30.54 -9.5% 1M +65.7% 1Y
Market cap
$2.90B
P/E
22.7x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.48B
Div. yield
–
Facility Services Industrials
5 wins
UNF Unifirst Corp
$251.03 -0.8% 1M +65.3% 1Y
Market cap
$4.47B
P/E
40.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$2.52B
Div. yield
–
Facility Services Industrials

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Cintas leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Cintas 6, CoreCivic 5). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCTASCXWUNFLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $91.68B $2.90B $4.47B CTAS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 44.5x 22.7x 40.8x CXW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 39.2x 1.8x 31.9x CXW
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.5% +24.3% +3.7% CXW
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 17.8% 5.1% 4.3% CTAS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 28.2% 6.6% — CTAS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 3.2x — CTAS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.01% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +24.4% +65.7% +65.3% CXW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.7%/yr +26.1%/yr +3.9%/yr CXW
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 23.9% 41.9% 34.5% CTAS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 62/100 54/100 44/100 CTAS

Percentile Scorecard

CTASCXWUNF

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCTASCXWUNF
Valuation 20 #92 of 114 49 #59 of 114 39 #70 of 114
Growth 79 #21 of 98 47 #52 of 98 29 #70 of 98
Profitability 99 #2 of 95 52 #46 of 95 53 #45 of 95
Financial Health 70 #39 of 126 39 #77 of 126 86 #18 of 126
Shareholder Returns 45 #39 of 70 84 #12 of 70 13 #61 of 70
Overall 62 54 44
  • CTAS ranked among 131 companies in Business Services
  • CXW ranked among 131 companies in Business Services
  • UNF ranked among 131 companies in Business Services

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCTASCXWUNFSPY
1 month +17.2%-9.5%-0.8% -1.0%
3 months +13.7%-2.2%-13.4% -0.4%
6 months +35.2%+44.3%-1.3% +4.5%
Year to date +21.8%+59.8%+30.1% +12.4%
1 year +24.4%+65.7%+65.3% +13.6%
3 years +76.7%+129.6%+48.2% +76.4%
3 years, per year +20.9%+32.0%+14.0% +20.8%
5 years +107.3%+219.1%+20.9% +63.7%
5 years, per year +15.7%+26.1%+3.9% +10.4%
10 years +788.9%+109.8%+104.8% +267.7%
10 years, per year +24.4%+7.7%+7.4% +13.9%

Risk

MeasureCTASCXWUNFSPY
Volatility, 1Y 23.9%41.9%34.5% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 24.0%43.5%25.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.120.340.16 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 1.021.571.89 1.06
Max drawdown, 5Y -28.2%-39.7%-34.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high 0.0%-14.0%-16.7% -1.6%
52-week high $229.03$35.53$301.48 $779.14
52-week low $163.55$16.13$150.02 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCTASCXWUNF
P/E now vs peer median 44.5xmedian 23.0x 23.6xmedian 23.0x 41.5xmedian 23.0x
P/S now vs peer median 7.9xmedian 0.9x 1.2xmedian 0.9x 1.8xmedian 0.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 29.1xmedian 12.1x 11.0xmedian 12.1x 15.7xmedian 12.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 45.0xmedian 15.8x 52.7xmedian 15.8x 64.3xmedian 15.8x
P/B now vs peer median 17.6xmedian 2.4x 2.1xmedian 2.4x 2.0xmedian 2.4x
PEG now vs peer median 2.93median 1.13 3.33median 1.13 14.40median 1.13

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCTASCXWUNF
Revenue $11.56B $2.48B $2.52B
Gross profit $5.89B – $922.95M
Operating income $2.70B – $136.04M
Net income $2.06B $127.90M $109.49M
Free cash flow $2.03B $57.32M $70.77M
EPS (diluted) $5.10 $1.29 $6.02
Cash & equivalents $243.60M $108.93M $192.12M
Total debt $2.43B $1.35B –
Shares (diluted) 404.29M 98.89M 18.20M
Enterprise value $90.77B $2.42B $3.82B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCTASCXWUNF
P/E 44.5x 23.6x 41.5x
P/FCF 45.0x 52.7x 64.3x
P/Operating cash flow 37.6x 15.1x 22.2x
P/S 7.9x 1.2x 1.8x
P/B 17.6x 2.1x 2.0x
P/Tangible book 18.6x 2.1x 2.1x
EV/EBITDA 29.1x 11.0x 15.7x
EV/EBIT 34.7x 17.2x 32.1x
EV/Revenue 8.1x 1.7x 1.7x
EV/FCF 46.1x 74.3x 61.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 38.5x 21.3x 21.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 2.93 3.33 14.40

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCTASCXWUNF
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.5% 24.3% 3.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 8.7% 10.2% 4.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 11.5% – 3.7%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 11.2% – 7.1%
Operating income growth (1Y) 11.8% – -26.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 13.2% – 0.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 11.3% 22.9% -26.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 14.3% 2.2% 1.8%
EPS growth (1Y) 12.7% 35.1% -24.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 15.2% 7.1% 2.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 14.8% -26.4% -30.9%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 14.4% 2.6% -1.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 19.5% -66.4% -50.3%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 17.4% -19.8% 17.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCTASCXWUNF
Gross margin 51.0% – 36.6%
EBITDA margin 27.8% 15.6% 11.0%
Operating margin 23.4% – 5.4%
Pretax margin 22.5% 7.0% 5.6%
Net margin 17.8% 5.1% 4.3%
FCF margin 17.6% 2.3% 2.8%
Operating cash flow margin 21.1% 8.1% 8.1%
Return on equity 39.8% 9.0% 4.9%
Return on assets 19.5% 3.7% 3.8%
Return on invested capital 28.2% 6.6% –
Return on capital employed 34.2% 8.5% 5.4%
Asset turnover 1.1x 0.7x 0.9x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.2x 1.6x 1.9x
Stock comp / revenue 1.1% 1.1% 0.5%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCTASCXWUNF
Debt / assets 22.8% 39.0% –
Debt / equity 0.5x 0.9x –
Net debt / EBITDA 0.7x 3.2x –
Debt / FCF 1.2x 23.5x –
Liabilities / assets 51.1% 58.4% 22.3%
Equity / assets 48.9% 41.6% 77.7%
Interest coverage 25.3x 3.3x –
Current ratio 1.5x 1.3x 3.1x
Quick ratio 0.7x 1.1x 1.6x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x 0.6x
Altman Z-score 13.90 1.89 6.61

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCTASCXWUNF
Dividend yield 0.8% – 0.6%
Net buyback yield 1.1% 6.3% 0.7%
Shareholder yield 1.9% 6.3% 1.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 35.2% – –
Payout ratio (FCF) 35.6% – –
Dividend growth (1Y) 14.8% – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 15.5% – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCTASCXWUNF
Forward P/E 39.2xFY2026 1.8xFY2026 31.9xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $5.85FY2026 $16.94FY2026 $7.88FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +18.4%FY2026 +1,468.5%FY2026 -2.7%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +10.4% -85.4% +12.3%
Revenue, next fiscal year $12.98BFY2026 $2.85BFY2026 $2.79BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +15.3%FY2026 +29.1%FY2026 +10.8%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after +6.8% -0.2% -9.0%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCTASCXWUNF
Held by institutions 67.6% 87.5% 81.3%
Institutions holding 1,433 278 342
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.4% +0.2% -2.5%
Institutions buying 660 155 162
Institutions selling 576 86 121
Buyers to sellers 1.15 1.80 1.34

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

CTASCXWUNF
CTAS 1.00 0.02 0.57
CXW 0.02 1.00 0.03
UNF 0.57 0.03 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, CTAS, CXW and UNF?

Cintas (CTAS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Cintas (CTAS) $91.68B, CoreCivic (CXW) $2.90B, Unifirst (UNF) $4.47B.

Which stock is cheaper, CTAS, CXW and UNF?

CoreCivic (CXW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Cintas (CTAS) 44.5x, CoreCivic (CXW) 22.7x, Unifirst (UNF) 40.8x). On next year's consensus earnings, CoreCivic (CXW) is cheapest (Cintas (CTAS) 39.2x, CoreCivic (CXW) 1.8x, Unifirst (UNF) 31.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

CoreCivic (CXW) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Cintas (CTAS) +9.5%, CoreCivic (CXW) +24.3%, Unifirst (UNF) +3.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Cintas (CTAS) has the highest net margin (Cintas (CTAS) 17.8%, CoreCivic (CXW) 5.1%, Unifirst (UNF) 4.3%). On return on invested capital, Cintas (CTAS) leads (Cintas (CTAS) 28.2%, CoreCivic (CXW) 6.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year CoreCivic (CXW) returned the most: Cintas (CTAS) +24.4%, CoreCivic (CXW) +65.7%, Unifirst (UNF) +65.3%. Over five years, CoreCivic (CXW) compounded fastest (Cintas (CTAS) +15.7%/yr, CoreCivic (CXW) +26.1%/yr, Unifirst (UNF) +3.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Cintas (CTAS) 0.01%, CoreCivic (CXW) 0.00%, Unifirst (UNF) 0.00%. CoreCivic (CXW) and Unifirst (UNF) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Cintas (CTAS) has been the steadiest (Cintas (CTAS) 23.9%, CoreCivic (CXW) 41.9%, Unifirst (UNF) 34.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, CTAS, CXW and UNF?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Cintas (CTAS) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.