Hertz car rental firm chooses buyer to take it out of US bankruptcy with €5bn valuation

Hertz Holdings said a proposal from Knighthead Capital and Certares to buy the car renter out of bankruptcy in the US was superior to an existing offer from a rival investor group.

The decision further escalates the brawl to own Hertz as travel rebounds and means the company’s current reorganisation sponsor, a group led by Centerbridge Partners, would need to counter with an updated plan of their own to stay in the running to acquire the car renter.

If the company receives further proposals from either group that meet its qualifications, Hertz would hold an auction on May 10, according to a statement Wednesday. 

Centerbridge has until May 7 to submit a counter-offer which would kick off the auction process. The Knighthead bid assigned Hertz an enterprise value of $6.2bn (€5.1bn), paid debt holders in full and offered shareholders cash. 

Meanwhile, General Motors posted far stronger-than-expected first-quarter profit despite a global semiconductor chip shortage as it held down costs and focused on high-margin pickup trucks and SUVs.

The Detroit car maker also said its full-year pre-tax profit would come in at the high end of its forecast. 

Bloomberg and Reuters