Hertz targets $2bn in stock buybacks

Hertz Global Holdings plans to repurchase as much as $2bn of its common stock, the latest move to realign its finances just months after exiting bankruptcy protection.

The car rental company’s shares rose 6% to $25.30 in New York.

The buyback is effective immediately, the company said in a statement on Monday. It initially will include the remaining $200m that was authorised for repurchase at the time of Hertz’s Nasdaq listing earlier in November. 

The Estero, Florida-based company last week announced a plan to buy back almost $1.9bn in preferred stock as part of a broader initiative to replace more expensive bankruptcy-era financing with cheaper debt. On November 17 it sold a $1.5bn high-yield bond in part to repay preferred equity provided by Apollo Global Management as it emerged from bankruptcy earlier in 2021.

Additionally, Hertz said it would keep its net corporate leverage no greater than 1.5 times.

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