Hertz Revenue Drops 3%

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. yesterday released its 2015 second quarter operating results.

Total U.S. car rental revenue was $1.6 billion in the 2015 second quarter, down 3% from the 2014 second quarter as a result of a 2% overall decline in transaction days. The company attributed the decline to a decrease in airport rental volume and a decrease in off-airport rental volume — due in part to the closure of around 200 stores.

During the second quarter, total revenue per day (RPD) declined 1%, primarily by lower fuel-related ancillary revenue, says the company. The revenue reduction was partially offset by a 5% decrease in direct operating expenses — versus the second quarter in 2014, according to the company.

"The second quarter demonstrates early progress in our efforts to drive performance improvement," said John Tague, Hertz’s president and chief executive officer. "Margins in our U.S. rental car business were stable year-over-year, and Total Revenue per Transaction Day, excluding ancillary fuel, returned to prior-year levels.”

Total international car rental revenues were $556 million in the second quarter of 2015, down 13% year-over-year, according to the company. This decrease was primarily due to the year-over-year negative impact of foreign currency — reducing revenues by $105 million. Excluding the impact of foreign currency, revenues increased $20 million or 4% year-over-year, says the company.

Other highlights from Hertz’s second quarter financial report included:

• Hertz Global continued to implement its fleet renewal strategy across its brands. During the second quarter, Hertz added around 125,000 new vehicles and disposed of approximately 120,000 risk and repurchase vehicles.
• Hertz’s U.S. car rental net depreciation per unit per month was flat year-over-year. Additionally, the mix of program cars increased 13 percentage points to 29% of the total average fleet.
• Hertz Global continues to make progress in reducing its costs by $300 million annually in 2016 — $200 million of which is expected to be realized in 2015. In the first half of 2015, Hertz realized approximately $80 million in cost savings.