John Griffin, founder, president, and chief executive officer of Blue Ridge Capital acquired 6,613,700 shares or a 6.7% stake in Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) based on his latest regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
John Griffin’s stake in Avis Budget Group
John Griffin’s stake in the car rental company include the 4,290,100 shares of 4% stake purchased by its affiliate Blue Ridge Limited Partnership (BRLP) and 2,323,600 shares or 2.17% by Blue Ridge Offshore Master Limited Partnership (BROMLP). Blue Ridge Capital serves as the investment manager of the firms.
Blue Ridge Capital acquired eight new equities during the third quarter that ended September 30 including American Homes 4 Rent (NYSE:AMH), Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE:CLF), and BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB). Its two largest stockholdings are Priceline.com Inc (NASDAQ:PCLN) and American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG), which account 4.88% and 4.26% of its portfolio, respectively.
Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) is one of the leading car rental service provider worldwide. It has more than 10,000 rental locations across 175 countries through its Zipcar brand and it has 850,000 members.
During the third quarter, Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) reported $1.48 diluted earnings per share. According to the company its revenue for the quarter increased by 10% to $2.48 billion while its adjusted EBITDA rose 2% to $383 million, the highest result in the history of the company.
Avis Budget Group’s third quarter performance
Ronald Nelson, chairman and CEO of Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) explained that the third quarter financial performance of the company was driven by a combination of solid pricing, volume growth in North America and strong results in EMEA. He added that the vehicle residual values in North America remained stable and the company is making progress in delivering synergies and expanding its Zipcar business.
Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) repurchased 860,000 shares worth $26 million during the third quarter under its $200 million shares repurchase program. The company also acquired 50% stake in its existing Brazilian licensee for $50 million to boost the presence of its Avis and Budget brands in the country. During the period, the company also completed the acquisition of Payless Car Rental.
Avis’ revenue projection
For the full year 2013, Avis Budge Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) projected to achieve $760 million to $780 million adjusted EBITDA and between $7.90 billion to $7.95 billion revenue.
Avid Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) recently announced its multi-year marketing partnership with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ:NCLH) to generate incremental car rental and cruise bookings.
