| Factor | Score | Distribution | Value | Avg | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Valuation | 70 | 83.9x | 17.8x | Top tier | |
Growth | 76 | 28.5% | 7.1% | Top tier | |
Quality | 57 | 5.4% | 4.5% | Around median | |
Safety | 30 | 6.1x | 2.6x | Bottom tier | |
Capital Return | 73 | 1.97% | 2.12% | Top tier | |
Momentum | 57 | 26.6% | 2.9% | Around median | |
Sentiment | 91 | 7 | 3 | Top tier |
Estimates — analyst targets and a simplified DCF, not investment advice.
Ten ratios that matter, each compared against its sector median and average — so you can see whether a number is rich or cheap relative to peers in the same sector.
Herc Holdings Inc. operates under the ticker HRI in equipment rental, serving contractors, industrial accounts, infrastructure projects, government entities, commercial facilities, and event-related customers. The revenue model relies primarily on equipment fleet rentals, with supporting revenue from services such as delivery and refueling, and the company targets a long-term mix of 60% local markets and 40% national accounts. The H&E acquisition expanded fleet size, branch density, and the capacity to serve energy, data center, and manufacturing projects, while specialty equipment represents a key driver of growth and profit margins.
In Q2 of fiscal year 2026, total revenue reached $1.2 billion, up 20% year over year according to the July 28, 2026 call, while equipment rental revenue rose approximately 23%, supported mainly by the inclusion of H&E for a longer period in the comparison base. Net income according to EDGAR was approximately $19 million and earnings per share were $0.57, while adjusted net income was $48 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $1.43. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization increased 19%, with a margin of 40.4%, while the adjusted margin excluding equipment and parts sales was 41.4%.
On a pro forma basis combining Herc and H&E in both periods, equipment rental revenue returned to growth at 2% despite an approximately 3% decline in the average fleet at original equipment cost, while dollar utilization increased by more than 200 basis points. Specialty equipment revenue grew at a double-digit rate, but represented a mid-teens percentage of the business following the H&E acquisition, compared with a long-term target of between 20% and 30%. By contrast, the pro forma adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization margin declined by approximately 60 basis points, and the adjusted margin excluding equipment and parts sales declined by approximately 120 basis points, due to fuel and transportation inflation and the impact of the H&E mix.
Automated analysis for informational purposes only — not investment advice.
The analyst consensus is “Buy,” with an average price target of $182 and a wide range between $160 and $218; the average is below the top of the 52-week range of $188.35, while the highest target exceeds that peak. No applicable price-to-earnings ratio is available, so the valuation depends more heavily on achieving fiscal year 2026 guidance, improving margins, and the company’s ability to reduce leverage from 3.95 times, while taking into account that the wide 52-week range between $88.45 and $188.35 reflects high repricing risk.
Figures in the text are as of 2026-08-30; the live price is shown at the top of the page.
Herc Holdings’ revenue reached approximately $1.2 billion, with total revenue up 20% and equipment rental revenue up approximately 23% year over year, supported mainly by the inclusion of H&E for a longer period in the comparison. On a pro forma basis, rental revenue grew 2% despite an approximately 3% decline in the average fleet at original equipment cost, while dollar utilization increased by more than 200 basis points. Net income was $19 million and earnings per share were $0.57, while adjusted net income was $48 million and adjusted diluted earnings per share were $1.43.
The H&E integration was completed in Q1 of fiscal year 2026, adding greater fleet capacity, branch density, and sales strength to serve complex projects. Herc raised its targeted share of the megaproject rental opportunity from the previous range of 10%–15% to a range of 15%–20% over the following years, without specifying that it would reach 20% in fiscal year 2026 or 2027. For fiscal year 2026, the company is targeting incremental revenue synergies of between $100 million and $120 million, and incremental cost synergies of $90 million toward a full target of $125 million by the end of fiscal year 2026.
Management raised guidance on July 28, 2026 because demand from national accounts and megaprojects exceeded its original assumptions, and pro forma rental revenue returned to growth earlier than expected during Q2. The midpoint of equipment rental revenue guidance is now $4.425 billion, representing pro forma growth of approximately 5% with the average fleet at original equipment cost remaining stable. The midpoint of adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization guidance also reached $2.09 billion, supported by net fleet capital expenditures of approximately $900 million.
Fuel and transportation costs rose approximately 35% between Q1 and Q2 of fiscal year 2026, creating approximately 150 basis points of pressure on the adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization margin. The adjusted margin was 40.4% in Q2, while the pro forma margin declined by approximately 60 basis points year over year. Management expects fuel and transportation to create approximately one percentage point of pressure on the fiscal year 2026 margin because approximately half of the impact relates to moving equipment and service vehicles and cannot be passed directly on to customers.
Specialty equipment revenue grew at a double-digit rate in Q2 of fiscal year 2026, and the company is directing approximately 70% of the planned increase in fleet purchases toward this higher-margin, higher-return category. Management is targeting an increase in the share of specialty equipment from the mid-teens following the H&E acquisition to between 20% and 30% of the business over the long term, while new specialty locations require approximately two years to reach mature-branch margins. On the digital side, the number of active external users of ProControl grew approximately 20% quarter over quarter, and e-commerce recorded its highest quarterly revenue in the same quarter.
Herc generated free cash flow of $202 million during the first half of fiscal year 2026 and ended Q2 with liquidity of $2.1 billion. However, increased fleet investment lowered the fiscal year 2026 free cash flow forecast to a range of between $250 million and $350 million, at a time when net leverage was 3.95 times. The plan to reach leverage of approximately 3 times by the end of fiscal year 2027 depends on the new equipment, particularly specialty equipment directed toward specific demand, entering service and generating additional earnings.
