Hertz says latest bid for rival Dollar Thrifty is ‘best and final offer’
By APFriday, September 24, 2010
Hertz says last bid for Dollar Thrifty is final
NEW YORK — Hertz said its bid for Dollar Thrifty will be its final offer, one day after rival Avis topped its bid of about $1.36 billion.
Hertz said Friday it won’t raise its bid valuing Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. at $50.25 per share. Avis on Thursday sweetened its own bid for Dollar Thrifty to $53 per share, or about $1.52 billion in cash in stock.
“A vote against the deal would be a lost opportunity for the Dollar Thrifty shareholders,” Hertz CEO Mark P. Frissora said.
Hertz said it already has antitrust clearance for the deal in Canada and has made progress with U.S. regulators.
Hertz Global Holdings Inc. and Avis Budget Group Inc. have been in a fight over budget rental chain Dollar Thrifty, which caters to leisure travelers that both companies want access to. The industry has been contracting and has lost many of the business travelers it once relied on for income.
Dollar Thrifty, headquartered in Tulsa, Okla., scheduled a special shareholders meeting for Thursday to vote on the Hertz offer. If shareholders approve the deal, Hertz said it hopes to close the purchase by the end of the year.
Shares of Dollar Thrifty fell $1.31, or 2.5 percent, to $51.03.
