Lawsuit Overview
April 22, 2020 - The case was voluntarily dismissed.
December 12, 2019 - An investor in shares of Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio over alleged violations of Federal Securities Laws by Cintas Corporation in connection with certain allegedly false and misleading statements made between March 6, 2017 and November 13, 2019.
Cincinnati, OH based Cintas Corporation provides corporate identity uniforms and related business services primarily in North America, Latin America, Europe, and Asia. Cintas Corporation reported that its Total Revenue rose from over $647 billion for the 12 months period that ended on May 31, 2018 to over $6.89 billion for the 12 months period that ended on May 31, 2019 and that its Net income increased from $842.58 million to $884.98 million over those respective time periods. NASDAQ: CTAS
On November 13, 2019, a research report was published about Cintas. According to the report, Cintas' Fire Protection Services directed workers to conduct fire and safety inspections without appropriate licenses and permits, and also falsified inspections. These practices reportedly led to fraud charges. Shares of Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) declined from $273.32 per share in late October 2019 to $250.19 per share on November 25, 2019.
According to the complaint the plaintiff alleges on behalf of purchasers of Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) common shares between March 6, 2017 and November 13, 2019, that the defendants violated Federal Securities Laws.
More specifically, the plaintiff claims that between March 6, 2017 and November 13, 2019, the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that Cintas never tracked legacy margins following the G&K acquisition, that the Company has systematically provided guidance with which it would outperform (a “Beat and Raise” scheme), that undisclosed to the investing public, the Company has breached the law multiple times, that as a result of publicly known and undisclosed breaches of law, the Company’s Credit Agreement may be jeopardized, and that as a result, defendants’ statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.