Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ) has drawn renewed attention from Reddit retail traders after a better-than-expected second-quarter earnings report sent the low-priced U.S. stock sharply higher over two straight sessions. The move has prompted comparisons with the meme-stock rallies seen in names such as GameStop and AMC in 2021.
Post-earnings rally puts HTZ in focus
According to BIT (bit.com) market data, HTZ rose about 30% on Thursday after the earnings release and kept climbing intraday on Friday. Trading volume expanded noticeably, and discussion spread through retail-trading communities including WallStreetBets.
Short positioning has been a major part of the story. MarketBeat data showed that as of July 15, short interest in HTZ was about 97.54 million shares, equal to roughly 31.2% of the public float. Days-to-cover stood at about 3.9. With a relatively high short base meeting a sudden jump in the share price, short covering became an important driver of the latest rally.
Earnings delivered the fundamental trigger
Hertz's latest results provided the immediate catalyst. The company posted second-quarter revenue of about $2.396 billion, up about 10% from a year earlier. Net profit was about $64 million, compared with a net loss of $294 million in the same period last year.
Loss per share came in at $0.11, better than market expectations for a $0.24 loss. Adjusted EBITDA was about $81 million, near the upper end of the company's guidance range. Improving used-car prices also eased an overhang that had weighed on sentiment: concern over falling residual values in Hertz's fleet.
Broader risk appetite also helped
The rally also came as risk appetite improved across U.S. equities. Last Friday, weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data reduced market bets that the Federal Reserve would continue raising interest rates. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury fell to about 4.64%, the S&P 500 reached a record high, the Nasdaq gained 1.3%, and the small-cap Russell 2000 also moved higher.
In that setting, capital rotating back into high-beta names made stocks like HTZ, which combine a low share price with elevated short interest, more likely short-term trading targets.
Still not a repeat of GameStop's 2021 setup
Even with the comparisons now circulating, HTZ's short-squeeze structure still differs from GameStop's 2021 peak. An SEC report from that period showed GME short interest had at one point exceeded 100% of the public float. HTZ, by contrast, currently has roughly 30% of its float sold short. That is elevated, but it is not at the same extreme level.