Filing Flows › Unifirst (UNF) › Takeover & LBO
Is Unifirst (UNF) a takeover target?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($331.29 a share) would return a loss of about 3% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%. Historically 3.7% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (0.74× the average). Latest signal (2026-05-11): Merger proxy (DEFM14A).
The buyout, step by step
| Entry | Amount | How |
|---|---|---|
| Offer price a share | $331.29 | today's $254.84 plus 30% |
| × shares | 18.2 million | |
| = Equity value | $6.0B | |
| + Debt refinanced | $0 | |
| − Cash | $192M | |
| = Enterprise value | $5.8B | 21.0× EBITDA of $278M |
| Fees | $117M | 2% of the price |
| New debt | $1.5B | 5.5× EBITDA at 7.65% a year; the limit that binds: 5.5× EBITDA |
| Buyer's own money | $4.4B | 74% of the cost |
5 years under the buyer
| Year | Revenue | EBITDA | Interest | Free cash flow | Debt left |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $2.6B | $288M | $117M | $16.9M | $1.5B |
| Year 2 | $2.7B | $299M | $116M | $22.2M | $1.5B |
| Year 3 | $2.8B | $309M | $114M | $27.7M | $1.5B |
| Year 4 | $2.9B | $319M | $112M | $33.6M | $1.4B |
| Year 5 | $3.0B | $328M | $109M | $39.6M | $1.4B |
The exit and the buyer's return
| Exit | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Exit multiple | 16.0× EBITDA | today's trading multiple, before any premium |
| Enterprise value at exit | $5.2B | |
| − Debt left | $1.4B | |
| = Buyer's equity | $3.9B | |
| Money multiple | 0.87× | on $4.4B put in |
| Buyer's yearly return (IRR) | −2.7% |
Price against return
What the buyer makes at other premiums over today's $254.84.
| Premium | Price a share | Buyer's IRR |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $280.32 | 2.1% |
| 20% | $305.81 | −0.5% |
| 30% | $331.29 | −2.7% |
| 40% | $356.78 | −4.7% |
| 50% | $382.26 | −6.4% |
The figures used
| Figure | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue, last 12 months | $2.5B | |
| EBITDA, last 12 months | $278M | 11.0% of revenue |
| Depreciation and amortization | $142M | |
| Capital spending | $135M | |
| Debt | $0 | |
| Cash | $192M | |
| Share price | $254.84 | on Oct 30, 2026 |
Fixed rules, the same as the interactive view's starting point: the shares are bought at today's price plus 30%, the company's debt is refinanced and fees take 2%. New debt is the least of 5.5× EBITDA, 65% of the price and the amount whose interest EBITDA covers 2 times, at 7.65% a year (SOFR 3.89% plus the high-yield B spread 3.26% plus 0.5%, rates of Oct 15, 2026). Revenue grows 3.7% in the first year — the company's own rate, held between −3% and +8% — fading to 3% by year 5; the EBITDA margin, depreciation and capital spending stay at today's share of revenue; working capital takes 10% of each year's added revenue; tax is 23% of profit after interest. Every dollar of free cash flow repays debt. After 5 years the buyer sells at today's multiple of EBITDA.
What a takeover could cost
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Unifirst would cost about $337.66 a share, $6.1B for all its shares.
| Premium | % | Price a share | All shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low end (a quarter of deals paid less) | 20% | $305.81 | $5.6B |
| Median | 32.5% | $337.66 | $6.1B |
| High end (a quarter paid more) | 51.8% | $386.85 | $7.0B |
The odds, from history
Historically 3.7% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (0.74× the average). Its figures put it in decile 3 of 10 (10 = the most likely to be bought). The odds come from a model of every merger proxy, tender-offer response and going-private statement filed on EDGAR since 2011, set against each company's size, margins, debt, cash flow and growth the year before.
Rumors and deal signals
- 2026-05-11 · DEFM14A · Merger proxy (DEFM14A)
Unifirst's latest quarter
Unifirst, Q4 FY26: revenue $645M (+5% year over year), operating margin 6.5%, net earnings $34.7M, operating cash flow $65.9M. The chart follows the revenue to costs, profit and cash.
Questions
Is Unifirst being acquired?
The latest signal on file is from 2026-05-11: Merger proxy (DEFM14A). A headline is not a deal; Filing Flows lists the news, 8-K filings and 13D filings about a sale.
Could private equity buy Unifirst?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($331.29 a share) would return a loss of about 3% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%.
What would a takeover of Unifirst cost?
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Unifirst would cost about $337.66 a share, $6.1B for all its shares.
Updated Nov 8, 2026. Read automatically from SEC filings and public data; errors are possible. Not investment advice.