- Shares of Hertz have soared as much as 2,031% leading up to its exit from bankruptcy.
- Hertz filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last year and was blocked by the SEC from selling equity amid a surge in its stock price.
- Hertz represented the original "meme stock" as few were able to make sense of its epic rally last year amid bankruptcy proceedings.
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In the runup to its exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, shares of Hertz Global have surged as much as 2,031% from its March 4 low of $0.41.
In many ways, Hertz was the original "meme stock" as few investors were able to make sense of its epic rally last year as the company dealt with both a deteriorating business due to the COVID-19 pandemic and bankruptcy proceedings. Months later, stocks like GameStopand AMC would see gravity-defying surges driven by retail investors, even as their underlying businesses lacked a solid foundation.
The stock soared more than 1,100% in a span of just two weeks last year, and Hertz tried to capitalize off of the move by selling new equity to raise funds. But that move was blocked by the SEC, who objected to the bankrupt firm's plan to sell new shares to investors.
Hertz ultimately received a $6 billion bid from Knighthead Capital Management, Certares Opportunities, and Apollo Management to buy the company out of bankruptcy.
The deal gave Hertz an enterprise value of $7.43 billion, and helped existing equity investors recover about $8 per share, which is rare considering equity holders usually get wiped out amid bankruptcy proceedings as debt holders are first in line to collect from the company.
Hertz investors received more than $1 billion in value from the bankruptcy exit, in the form of $239 million cash and warrants for 18% of the reorganized company.
Hertz says its now better positioned to capitalize off of the post-pandemic travel boom with a much leaner balance sheet and smaller debt load.
Shares of Hertz currently trade on the OTC markets under the ticker symbol "HTZGQ" and closed at $8.74 on Wednesday. The stock will now trade under the ticker symbol "HTZZ." Hertz is up 583% year-to-date.
