Hertz Global Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:HTZ) shares are ripping higher Thursday after rallying 56% on Wednesday following reports that Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management built a sizable stake in the rental car company.
What Happened: Pershing Square revealed in a regulatory filing Wednesday that the firm purchased 12.71 million shares of Hertz as of Dec. 31, representing a stake of approximately 4.1%.
Late Wednesday, CNBC's Scott Wapner reported on "Closing Bell" that a person familiar with the matter said Pershing’s stake is actually significantly higher at 19.8%, making Ackman’s firm the company’s second-largest shareholder.
Wapner reported that Pershing Square received a confidential treatment provision from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, allowing the firm to delay the filing beyond the normally required reporting period.
“Which gave them the ability to accumulate substantially more shares since the end of December," Wapner said.
Hertz filed for Chapter 11 protection during the COVID-19 pandemic. The company emerged from the restructuring in 2021 with a plan to shift its focus to electric vehicles, but losses mounted due to vehicle value declines.
CNBC reported that Pershing is optimistic about a turnaround under new management. The source also reportedly said Pershing's bet is partially a tariff play since used cars aren't impacted by tariffs.
Hertz said in February that it was focused on “stabilizing the business” and implementing changes to “transform” the company.
Hertz shares are seeing a lot of attention on Thursday. The stock was the top trending ticker across multiple social sites at the time of writing. The company had a market cap of approximately $1.75 billion as of Wednesday’s close, per Benzinga Pro.
HTZ Price Action: Hertz Global shares were up 40.3% at $8.01 at the time of publication Thursday, according to Benzinga Pro.
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