Herc Holdings Inc. Declares Regular Quarterly Dividend of $0.70 per share

Let’s dig into the relative performance of Alta and its peers as we unravel the now-completed Q3 specialty equipment distributors earnings season.

Historically, specialty equipment distributors have boasted deep selection and expertise in sometimes narrow areas like single-use packaging or unique lighting equipment. Additionally, the industry has evolved to include more automated industrial equipment and machinery over the last decade, driving efficiencies and enabling valuable data collection. Specialty equipment distributors whose offerings keep up with these trends can take share in a still-fragmented market, but like the broader industrials sector, this space is at the whim of economic cycles that impact the capital spending and manufacturing propelling industry volumes.

The 8 specialty equipment distributors stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q3. As a group, revenues along with next quarter’s revenue guidance were in line with analysts’ consensus estimates.

While some specialty equipment distributors stocks have fared somewhat better than others, they have collectively declined. On average, share prices are down 4.7% since the latest earnings results.

Weakest Q3: Alta

Founded in 1984, Alta Equipment Group is a provider of industrial and construction equipment and services across the Midwest and Northeast United States.

Alta reported revenues of $422.6 million, down 5.8% year on year. This print fell short of analysts’ expectations by 8.4%. Overall, it was a disappointing quarter for the company with a significant miss of analysts’ revenue and adjusted operating income estimates.

Alta delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 15.8% since reporting and currently trades at $4.95.

Read our full report on Alta here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: Richardson Electronics

Founded in 1947, Richardson Electronics is a distributor of power grid and microwave tubes as well as consumables related to those products.

Richardson Electronics reported revenues of $54.61 million, up 1.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 6%. The business had an incredible quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

Richardson Electronics scored the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems content with the results as the stock is up 1.8% since reporting. It currently trades at $10.81.

Is now the time to buy Richardson Electronics? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Herc

Formerly a subsidiary of Hertz Corporation and with a logo that still bears some similarities to its former parent, Herc Holdings provides equipment rental and related services to a wide range of industries.

Herc reported revenues of $1.30 billion, up 35.1% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 0.9%. Still, it was a slower quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Herc delivered the fastest revenue growth but had the weakest full-year guidance update in the group. Interestingly, the stock is up 8% since the results and currently trades at $143.89.

Read our full analysis of Herc’s results here.

Hudson Technologies

Founded in 1991, Hudson Technologies specializes in refrigerant services and solutions, providing refrigerant sales, reclamation, and recycling.

Hudson Technologies reported revenues of $74.01 million, up 19.5% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 2.7%. It was a stunning quarter as it also recorded a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

The stock is down 11.4% since reporting and currently trades at $7.65.

Read our full, actionable report on Hudson Technologies here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Custom Truck One Source

Inspired by a family gas station, Custom Truck One Source is a distributor of trucks and heavy equipment.

Custom Truck One Source reported revenues of $482.1 million, up 7.8% year on year. This result came in 1.5% below analysts' expectations. Aside from that, it was a strong quarter as it produced a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Custom Truck One Source scored the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 4.3% since reporting and currently trades at $6.45.

Read our full, actionable report on Custom Truck One Source here, it’s free for active Edge members.

What Happened?

Shares of equipment rental company Herc Holdings jumped 4.5% in the morning session after the company priced a $1.2 billion offering of senior notes and announced a key leadership promotion. Herc Holdings priced $1.2 billion in senior unsecured notes, split into two $600 million portions due in 2031 and 2034. The company planned to use the proceeds to pay off all of its $1.2 billion in existing notes that were due in 2027. This move was seen as a way for the company to manage its long-term debt.

Is now the time to buy Herc? Access our full analysis report here.

What Is The Market Telling Us

Herc’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 39 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 15 days ago when the stock dropped 3.2% on the news that investors grew wary about the sustainability of the artificial intelligence-led boom, leading to a broad market decline. Nvidia slid 3% ahead of its earnings report, dragging down fellow "Magnificent Seven" peers despite a major partnership announcement with Anthropic, as investors increasingly question the durability of the AI rally.Market sentiment was further dampened by Bitcoin dropping below $90,000, signaling reduced risk appetite, and growing anxiety that the Federal Reserve may pause rate cuts in December, with the implied probability of a cut falling to roughly 50%. Adding to the weakness, Home Depot shares declined following an earnings miss and a cut to its full-year outlook. This combination of continued de-risking and valuation skepticism put the S&P 500 on pace for its fourth consecutive daily decline.

Herc is down 25.4% since the beginning of the year, and at $138.70 per share, it is trading 39.7% below its 52-week high of $230.14 from December 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Herc’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $2,274.