United Rentals to Acquire H&E Equipment Services for $4.8 Billion

United Rentals, Inc. (URI) entered a merger agreement on January 14, 2025, to acquire smaller rival H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (HEES) in a deal valued at $4.8 billion, including debt.

Deal Structure:

As per the agreement, United Rentals intends to commence a tender offer by January 28, 2025, to acquire all of the outstanding shares of H&E common stock for $92 per share in cash, representing a 109.38% premium from the stock’s last close.

Company Profile:

H&E Equipment Services, based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, provides equipment rentals, sales, parts, and maintenance services to industrial, commercial, and municipal customers across high-growth regions in the U.S., including the Pacific Northwest, West Coast, Intermountain, Southwest, Gulf Coast, Southeast, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic.

United Rentals is the largest equipment rental company in the world, offering a wide range of construction, industrial, and specialty equipment for rent, along with sales, repair, and maintenance services through its extensive network of locations across North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

Deal Details and Timeline:

The deal will add nearly 64,000 pieces of equipment to United Rentals’ fleet, worth over $2.9 billion when new, with an average age of less than 41 months. It will also include about $230 million worth of other non-rental equipment.

The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2025.

The merger agreement includes a 35-day “go-shop” period, ending on February 17, 2025. During this time, H&E, with help from its financial advisor BofA Securities, will actively seek and evaluate other offers.

United Rentals is paying 16.51 times EBITDA for H&E Equipment.

Milbank served as legal advisor to H&E Equipment, while United Rentals received financial guidance from Morgan Stanley Senior Funding and Wells Fargo, and legal counsel from Sullivan & Cromwell.

Deal Metrics:

For more detailed information about this merger and acquisition, visit the Deal Metrics page here:

Deal Metrics for the acquisition of H&E Equipment Services, Inc. (HEES) by United Rentals, Inc. (URI)

The Deal Metrics page for each merger or acquisition includes:

• A spread history chart of the merger from announcement through eventual completion or failure.
• Every event as the merger progresses through the expiration of the HSR period, regulatory approvals, shareholder votes, etc.
• News and SEC filings.
• A history of deal updates.
• And much more.

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Editor’s Note: Baranjot Kaur contributed to this article