Hertz sweetens Dollar Thrifty deal to $1.56bn

Car rental company Hertz Global Holdings said on Sunday Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group has agreed to a sweetened $1.56 billion takeover offer, outdoing a rival bid from Avis Budget Group.

Hertz raised its bid for Dollar to $50 per share, including a $10.80 per share increase in the cash component of the offer, and the two sides amended their merger agreement, Hertz spokesman Richard Broome said.

Hertz had earlier agreed to buy Dollar Thrifty for $1.1 billion. Other major provisions of their original deal are unchanged, including a $44.6 million breakup fee payable to Dollar Thrifty if required antitrust clearance is not obtained.

Hertz has also started the process of divesting its Advantage Rent-a-Car unit in a move to ensure it will get regulatory approval for the deal, Broome said.

Earlier this month Avis raised its rival bid for Dollar Thrifty to $1.36 billion.

But Dollar Thrifty had raised concerns that the Avis bid may run afoul of antitrust regulations. Avis has also refused to include a fee if it cannot complete its proposed merger.

Last week, a Delaware court cleared Dollar Thrifty to put its deal with Hertz to a vote by shareholders.
After the new purchase deal, Dollar Thrifty has postponed a shareholder vote on the Hertz deal to Sept. 30 from Sept. 16, Broome said.

Hertz, which had its investor day on Sept. 30, will reschedule it to a later date.
Dollar Thrifty was not immediately available for comment.

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