Hertz Reports Q4 Earnings Below Analyst Estimates

Q4 CY2024 Highlights:

* Revenue: $2.04 billion (6.6% YoY decline)
* Adjusted EPS: -$1.18 (63.9% below consensus)
* Adjusted EBITDA: -$357 million (significant miss)
* Sales Volumes: 4.3% YoY decline

Key Metrics:

* Market Capitalization: $1.31 billion
* Operating Margin: -13.1% (improved from -15%)
* Free Cash Flow: -$2.25 billion

Company Overview:

Hertz, a global car rental company, has experienced challenges in recent years, with a 1.5% annual sales decline over the past five years. Despite a 2.1% annualized revenue growth over the last two years, Q4 results fell short of expectations.

Sales Growth:

While Hertz's annualized revenue growth of 2.1% over the last two years is better than its five-year trend, it underperformed peers in the Ground Transportation industry.

Operating Margin:

Despite its historical profitability, Hertz's operating margin of 7.2% was below industry benchmarks. However, it has shown improvement over the last five years.

Earnings Per Share:

Hertz's EPS has declined by 43.7% annually over the past five years. In Q4, EPS was -$1.18, below analyst estimates.

Q4 Key Takeaways:

* Revenue, EPS, and EBITDA missed analyst expectations.
* Stock dropped 8.9% after earnings release.

Investment Considerations:

Investors should carefully consider the company's valuation, business qualities, and recent earnings before making investment decisions. A full research report is available for further analysis.