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Side-by-side financial comparison of Cintas (CTAS) and SONIC AUTOMOTIVE INC (SAH). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
SONIC AUTOMOTIVE INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($3.7B vs $2.8B, roughly 1.3× Cintas). Cintas runs the higher net margin — 17.7% vs 1.6%, a 16.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Cintas posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (9.3% vs 1.0%). Over the past eight quarters, Cintas's revenue compounded faster (7.9% CAGR vs 3.4%).
Cintas Corporation is an American corporation headquartered in Mason, Ohio, which provides a range of products and services to businesses including uniforms, mats, mops, cleaning and restroom supplies, first aid and safety products, fire extinguishers and testing, and safety courses. Cintas is a publicly held company traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol CTAS and is a component of the S&P 500 Index.
Sonic Automotive is a Fortune 500 company based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is the fifth largest automotive retailer in the United States as measured by total revenues. The company was founded by O Bruton Smith and completed its initial public offering on the NYSE in 1997.
CTAS vs SAH — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.8B | $3.7B |
| Net Profit | $495.3M | $60.8M |
| Gross Margin | 50.4% | 16.2% |
| Operating Margin | 23.4% | 3.1% |
| Net Margin | 17.7% | 1.6% |
| Revenue YoY | 9.3% | 1.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | 10.4% | — |
| EPS (diluted) | $1.21 | $1.79 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | — | $3.7B | ||
| Q4 25 | $2.8B | $3.9B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.7B | $4.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.7B | $3.7B | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.6B | $3.7B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.6B | $3.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.5B | $3.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.5B | $3.5B |
| Q1 26 | — | $60.8M | ||
| Q4 25 | $495.3M | $46.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $491.1M | $46.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $448.3M | $-45.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $463.5M | $70.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $448.5M | $58.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $452.0M | $74.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $414.3M | $41.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | 16.2% | ||
| Q4 25 | 50.4% | 15.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 50.3% | 15.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 49.7% | 16.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 50.6% | 15.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 49.8% | 14.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 50.1% | 15.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 15.6% |
| Q1 26 | — | 3.1% | ||
| Q4 25 | 23.4% | 3.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 22.7% | 3.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 22.4% | -0.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 23.4% | 4.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 23.1% | 3.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 22.4% | 3.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 22.2% | 3.1% |
| Q1 26 | — | 1.6% | ||
| Q4 25 | 17.7% | 1.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 18.1% | 1.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 16.8% | -1.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 17.8% | 1.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 17.5% | 1.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 18.1% | 2.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 16.8% | 1.2% |
| Q1 26 | — | $1.79 | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.21 | $1.39 | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.20 | $1.33 | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.08 | $-1.34 | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.13 | $2.04 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.09 | $1.67 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.10 | $2.13 | ||
| Q2 24 | $4.00 | $1.18 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $200.8M | — |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $2.4B | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $4.5B | — |
| Total Assets | $10.1B | — |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.54× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $200.8M | $6.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $138.1M | $89.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $264.0M | $110.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | $243.4M | $64.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $122.4M | $44.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $101.4M | $17.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $342.0M | $67.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $2.4B | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.4B | $1.5B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.4B | $1.5B | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.0B | $1.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.0B | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.0B | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.0B | $1.7B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.5B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $4.8B | $1.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $4.7B | $1.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.6B | $1.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.3B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $4.0B | $1.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $4.3B | $944.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $10.1B | $6.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $9.8B | $6.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.8B | $5.9B | ||
| Q1 25 | $9.6B | $5.9B | ||
| Q4 24 | $9.4B | $5.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $9.1B | $5.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $9.2B | $5.8B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.54× | 1.51× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.51× | 1.39× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.52× | 1.48× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.44× | 1.44× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.47× | 1.49× | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.50× | 1.67× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.47× | 1.81× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $531.2M | — |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $425.0M | — |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 15.2% | — |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 3.8% | — |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 1.07× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $1.8B | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $531.2M | $66.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $414.5M | $167.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $635.7M | $136.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $622.0M | $195.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | $441.4M | $87.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $466.7M | $87.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $693.0M | $-136.4M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $425.0M | $-195.6M | ||
| Q3 25 | $312.5M | $134.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $521.1M | $102.7M | ||
| Q1 25 | $522.1M | $150.8M | ||
| Q4 24 | $340.0M | $-245.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $373.8M | $34.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $591.1M | $-185.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 15.2% | -5.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 11.5% | 3.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 19.5% | 2.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 20.0% | 4.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 13.3% | -6.3% | ||
| Q3 24 | 14.9% | 1.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 23.9% | -5.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 3.8% | 6.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.8% | 0.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 4.3% | 0.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 3.8% | 1.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 4.0% | 8.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 3.7% | 1.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.1% | 1.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.07× | 1.43× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.84× | 3.59× | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.42× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.34× | 2.77× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.98× | 1.50× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.03× | 1.18× | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.67× | -3.31× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
CTAS
| Uniform Rental And Facility Services Segment | $2.2B | 77% |
| First Aid And Safety Services Segment | $342.2M | 12% |
| Fire Protection Services | $222.5M | 8% |
| Uniform Direct Sales | $79.8M | 3% |
SAH
| Retail new vehicles | $1.6B | 44% |
| Used vehicles | $1.3B | 34% |
| Parts, service and collision repair | $516.6M | 14% |
| Finance, insurance and other, net | $202.4M | 5% |
| Wholesale vehicles | $71.8M | 2% |
| Fleet new vehicles | $20.7M | 1% |
