Ford Files IPO To Spin Off Hertz Again

Ford Motor Co. this week filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission to launch an initial public offering to once again spin off its Hertz Rent-A-Car subsidiary.

Ford, during its annual earnings call in April, discussed the possibility of selling its Hertz subsidiary. In the past decade, Ford has had an on-again, off-again ownership of the rental car firm and in 2001 it acquired all outstanding shares of Hertz. Ford in a statement said that following the IPO it plans to divest any remaining ownership interest in the car rental giant.

Hertz, which Ford said operates the largest general-use rental business in the world, earlier this year reported a record net income of $365 million for 2004 and has maintained momentum throughout 2005. For the first quarter of 2005, Hertz reported a $33 million pre-tax profit, a drastic improvement from a $7 million pre-tax loss recorded for the same period last year.