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Side-by-side financial comparison of Cintas (CTAS) and Xcel Energy (XEL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

Cintas is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($6.4B vs $4.0B, roughly 1.6× Xcel Energy). Xcel Energy runs the higher net margin — 13.8% vs 7.8%, a 6.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Cintas posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (8.9% vs 2.9%). Over the past eight quarters, Cintas's revenue compounded faster (61.2% CAGR vs 15.2%).

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.

Xcel Energy Inc. is a U.S. regulated electric utility and natural gas delivery company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving approximately 3.9 million electricity customers and 2.2 million natural gas customers across parts of eight states as of mid-2025. It consists of four operating subsidiaries: Northern States Power-Minnesota, Northern States Power-Wisconsin, Public Service Company of Colorado, and Southwestern Public Service Co.

CTAS vs XEL — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
CTAS
CTAS
1.6× larger
CTAS
$6.4B
$4.0B
XEL
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
CTAS
CTAS
+6.0% gap
CTAS
8.9%
2.9%
XEL
Higher net margin
XEL
XEL
6.0% more per $
XEL
13.8%
7.8%
CTAS
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
CTAS
CTAS
Annualised
CTAS
61.2%
15.2%
XEL

Income Statement — Q4 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Revenue
$6.4B
$4.0B
Net Profit
$502.5M
$556.0M
Gross Margin
83.1%
Operating Margin
10.3%
18.8%
Net Margin
7.8%
13.8%
Revenue YoY
8.9%
2.9%
Net Profit YoY
8.4%
EPS (diluted)
$1.24

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.

Revenue
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$6.4B
$4.0B
Q4 25
$2.8B
$3.6B
Q3 25
$2.7B
$3.9B
Q2 25
$2.7B
$3.3B
Q1 25
$2.6B
$3.9B
Q4 24
$2.6B
$3.1B
Q3 24
$2.5B
$3.6B
Q2 24
$2.5B
$3.0B
Net Profit
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$502.5M
$556.0M
Q4 25
$495.3M
$567.0M
Q3 25
$491.1M
$524.0M
Q2 25
$448.3M
$444.0M
Q1 25
$463.5M
$483.0M
Q4 24
$448.5M
$464.0M
Q3 24
$452.0M
$682.0M
Q2 24
$414.3M
$302.0M
Gross Margin
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
83.1%
Q4 25
50.4%
Q3 25
50.3%
Q2 25
49.7%
Q1 25
50.6%
Q4 24
49.8%
Q3 24
50.1%
Q2 24
Operating Margin
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
10.3%
18.8%
Q4 25
23.4%
16.3%
Q3 25
22.7%
19.1%
Q2 25
22.4%
17.6%
Q1 25
23.4%
17.3%
Q4 24
23.1%
11.1%
Q3 24
22.4%
25.0%
Q2 24
22.2%
14.8%
Net Margin
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
7.8%
13.8%
Q4 25
17.7%
15.9%
Q3 25
18.1%
13.4%
Q2 25
16.8%
13.5%
Q1 25
17.8%
12.4%
Q4 24
17.5%
14.9%
Q3 24
18.1%
18.7%
Q2 24
16.8%
10.0%
EPS (diluted)
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$1.24
Q4 25
$1.21
$0.95
Q3 25
$1.20
$0.88
Q2 25
$1.08
$0.75
Q1 25
$1.13
$0.84
Q4 24
$1.09
$0.81
Q3 24
$1.10
$1.21
Q2 24
$4.00
$0.54

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$183.2M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$35.6B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$4.8B
Total Assets
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$183.2M
Q4 25
$200.8M
Q3 25
$138.1M
$1.1B
Q2 25
$264.0M
$1.5B
Q1 25
$243.4M
$1.1B
Q4 24
$122.4M
$179.0M
Q3 24
$101.4M
$1.5B
Q2 24
$342.0M
$1.6B
Total Debt
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$35.6B
Q4 25
$2.4B
$31.8B
Q3 25
$2.4B
$32.0B
Q2 25
$2.4B
$31.1B
Q1 25
$2.0B
$29.4B
Q4 24
$2.0B
$27.3B
Q3 24
$2.0B
$27.5B
Q2 24
$2.0B
$27.7B
Stockholders' Equity
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$4.8B
Q4 25
$4.5B
$23.6B
Q3 25
$4.8B
$21.2B
Q2 25
$4.7B
$21.0B
Q1 25
$4.6B
$19.8B
Q4 24
$4.3B
$19.5B
Q3 24
$4.0B
$19.4B
Q2 24
$4.3B
$18.0B
Total Assets
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$10.1B
$81.4B
Q3 25
$9.8B
$79.2B
Q2 25
$9.8B
$75.3B
Q1 25
$9.6B
$72.7B
Q4 24
$9.4B
$70.0B
Q3 24
$9.1B
$69.3B
Q2 24
$9.2B
$67.9B
Debt / Equity
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
0.54×
1.35×
Q3 25
0.51×
1.51×
Q2 25
0.52×
1.48×
Q1 25
0.44×
1.48×
Q4 24
0.47×
1.40×
Q3 24
0.50×
1.42×
Q2 24
0.47×
1.54×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$1.6B
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$1.3B
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
19.7%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
4.7%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
3.12×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$2.5B

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$1.6B
Q4 25
$531.2M
$209.0M
Q3 25
$414.5M
$1.8B
Q2 25
$635.7M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$622.0M
$1.0B
Q4 24
$441.4M
$664.0M
Q3 24
$466.7M
$1.7B
Q2 24
$693.0M
$1.2B
Free Cash Flow
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$1.3B
Q4 25
$425.0M
$-3.2B
Q3 25
$312.5M
$-1.3B
Q2 25
$521.1M
$-1.3B
Q1 25
$522.1M
$-960.0M
Q4 24
$340.0M
$-1.6B
Q3 24
$373.8M
$-42.0M
Q2 24
$591.1M
$-641.0M
FCF Margin
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
19.7%
Q4 25
15.2%
-90.7%
Q3 25
11.5%
-33.0%
Q2 25
19.5%
-40.9%
Q1 25
20.0%
-24.6%
Q4 24
13.3%
-49.8%
Q3 24
14.9%
-1.2%
Q2 24
23.9%
-21.2%
Capex Intensity
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
4.7%
Q4 25
3.8%
96.5%
Q3 25
3.8%
78.0%
Q2 25
4.3%
73.8%
Q1 25
3.8%
50.9%
Q4 24
4.0%
71.1%
Q3 24
3.7%
48.8%
Q2 24
4.1%
60.5%
Cash Conversion
CTAS
CTAS
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
3.12×
Q4 25
1.07×
0.37×
Q3 25
0.84×
3.37×
Q2 25
1.42×
2.43×
Q1 25
1.34×
2.13×
Q4 24
0.98×
1.43×
Q3 24
1.03×
2.55×
Q2 24
1.67×
3.94×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

CTAS
CTAS

Segment breakdown not available.

XEL
XEL

Electric$3.0B74%
Natural gas$1.0B26%

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