Billionaire Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management, known for being an activist investor, has purchased more than 12.7 million shares of Hertz Global Holdings stock, according to a Wednesday U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. That figure represents about 4.1 percent of the car rental company’s outstanding shares and is valued at about $46.5 million, according to the filing.
On April 15, Hertz’s stock price closed at $3.65 per share. After the investment announcement, the price closed on Wednesday at $5.71.
Hertz has struggled in recent years. The company filed for bankruptcy in May 2020, which it exited in mid-2021. Thought it benefitted from high demand and low car supply during the pandemic, it invested big on electric vehicles during this time, agreeing to acquire 100,000 Tesla vehicles and up to 175,000 GM EVs. That bet didn’t pay off, and by January 2024, the company announced it would sell off 20,000 of its U.S. EVs, which increased to 30,000 a few months later.
In its most recent earnings report, the company said it lost $479 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, and reported a full-year net loss of $2.86 billion.
Since filing for bankruptcy, Hertz has had five CEOs: Kathryn Marinello from January 2017 to the time of filing for Chapter 11; Paul Stone from May 2020 to October 2021; Mark Fields as interim CEO from October 2021 to February 2022; Stephen Scherr from February 2022 to March 31, 2024, and current executive Gil West from April 1, 2024.
Pershing Square over the past 20 years has taken investment positions in many companies, including fast food chains Wendy’s and Chipotle and supplement firm Herbalife.
Recent Comments