Silicon Investor - Auto Rental Companies - AVI, BD, HRZ, DTG, AN

[Sr K] Hertz Global Holdings Inc. said it would pay about $168 million to settle 364 pe...

Sr K — 12/5/2022 2:47:00 PM

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. said it would pay about $168 million to settle 364 pending claims related to vehicle-theft reporting, some instances of which have allegedly led customers to face wrongful arrest for car theft.

The hundreds of settlements resolve more than 95% of outstanding claims, Hertz said. The company said it doesn’t expect the settlement to have a material impact on its capital allocation plans for the balance of 2022 and 2023. The company also expects to recover a meaningful portion of the settlement amount from its insurance carriers.

Exc.

[Paul Senior] CAR's now dropped back again: I'll add a bit more to my position now. Fwiw, I ...

Paul Senior — 11/10/2015 12:57:43 AM

CAR's now dropped back again: I'll add a bit more to my position now.

Fwiw, I gave up on HTZ a while ago and sold my shares at loss.

[Paul Senior] I'll take a few more shares now that we see how much the restatements dented pas...

Paul Senior — 3/4/2015 12:40:42 PM

I'll take a few more shares now that we see how much the restatements dented past profits.

[Paul Senior] I take more shares at current price.

Paul Senior — 10/11/2014 3:48:46 PM

[Paul Senior] From today's Barron's Activist Spotlight: ...Hertz is a growth company that is...

Paul Senior — 8/30/2014 9:15:31 PM

From today's Barron's Activist Spotlight:

...Hertz is a growth company that is part of an oligopoly with serious barriers to entry, such as real estate at airports, which is no longer readily available. However, the company has had recent operational issues (car recalls in 2014) and accounting issues resulting in late SEC filings. As a result, there is a large valuation gap between Hertz and its closest competitor, Avis. Many shareholders, most notably Fir Tree Partners, have lost confidence in management. Fir Tree recently called for the replacement of the CEO. (See Barron's Follow-up on Hertz). Icahn is not one to follow the lead of other shareholders, but will have his own discussions with management and make his own decisions. Hertz is on the right track, with the recent decision to spin off its rental equipment business. Icahn's presence may be enough to reinvigorate management's focus. But if disagreements between shareholders and management develop into a proxy fight, the large concentration of hedge funds in the shareholder base is a positive factor for activists.

-- Kenneth Squire

Awaiting further developments, I continue to hold my HTZ shares.

[Paul Senior] Nice Catch-22 for the traveler. You get on a toll-road, you either pay the to...

Paul Senior — 8/30/2014 9:10:19 PM

Nice Catch-22 for the traveler. You get on a toll-road, you either pay the toll electronically or not at all. No cash accepted. If you don't have the electronic device on your rental car, the car rental company gets a bill for the toll. They got to staff for this, cut and mail checks, etc. For this, apparently in Florida, one company charges $30. Maybe for each toll violation as for multiple violations per day? Your only other choice apparently -- if you have to be on those toll roads -- is to rent the electronic equipment from the rental car company that will read/pay the toll. And of course, the rental car company sees this rental option as a profit-making one.

[Sr K] businessweek.com When Does a $5 Toll Cost $30? When You're Driving a Rental Car...

Sr K — 8/30/2014 8:14:50 PM

businessweek.com

When Does a $5 Toll Cost $30? When You're Driving a Rental Car
By Justin Bachman August 29, 2014

With the rise of “cashless” turnpikes, where tolls are collected via a device such as EZ-Pass rather than at tollbooths, rental car companies have found two ways to pass those costs on to their customers, both unpopular: Customers can choose to rent a pass for as much as $20 a day, which they’ll pay whether or not they pass through a toll plaza, or they can pay the fines for going through the lanes without a pass, plus a hefty processing fee tacked on by the rental company.

Customers are ticked at what seems like yet another charge, like fees for checked baggage. After a Florida Dollar Rent a Car added $30 in administrative fees to a bill for $2.74 in tolls, Roxanna Usher of Redwood Valley, Calif., vented her spleen on the entire state. “I’m angry beyond belief and can’t even imagine coming back to your state,” she wrote in a Jan. 13 complaint to Florida’s attorney general. “Talk about a corrupt state! It’s disgusting what you’re doing to tourists—the mainstay of your economy.”

Florida’s attorney general has received nearly 100 similar complaints in the past 18 months from rental car customers regarding the toll violation fees. The office is investigating fee complaints from customers of Dollar Thrifty, Avis Budget Group( CAR), and Enterprise Holdings, according to spokesman Whitney Ray. The issue has also prompted consumer lawsuits by renters in Florida, New Jersey, New York, and Washington state.

[Paul Senior] HTZ. Company in a mess. It still seems to be the biggest in the sector, and ...

Paul Senior — 8/20/2014 6:55:05 PM

HTZ. Company in a mess. It still seems to be the biggest in the sector, and it's problems can be fixed (I hope.) Following news Carl Icahn is in, I add a few more shares to my small position.

[Paul Senior] HTZ. In for few shares this morning. Perhaps for a swing-trade, perhaps for a...

Paul Senior — 8/8/2014 10:28:50 AM

HTZ. In for few shares this morning. Perhaps for a swing-trade, perhaps for a longer hold. I like Cramer's positives for the stock.

cnbc.com

I am still holding shares of Avis (CAR).

[Paul Senior] ...and now I'll start trimming my position.

Paul Senior — 11/14/2013 10:52:34 AM

[Paul Senior] I'll take a position in Avis (CAR) at current price. Low forward estimated p/e...

Paul Senior — 12/29/2011 3:20:25 PM

I'll take a position in Avis (CAR) at current price. Low forward estimated p/e is attractive (to me).

I like companies with franchises that seem to endure. And with consolidation in the industry, maybe Avis will continue to plod along okay getting its share of the rental business.

I found this to be a very positive article on Avis:
forbes.com