United Rentals drops $3.4 Billion purchase of H&E Equipment

United Rentals Inc. abandoned its plan to acquire H&E Equipment Services Inc., declining to increase its original offer of $3.4 billion for the rival construction equipment supplier.

H&E said Feb. 16 that it had received a superior offer from another bidder, United Rentals said Tuesday in a statement. Under the terms of the agreement, H&E is required to pay a fee of $63.5 million if it terminates the agreement with United Rentals, the statement said.

Shares of United Rentals fell 2.1% at 8 a.m. before US markets opened. H&E shares gained 13%.

H&E rents and sells equipment for purposes such as aerial work, earthmoving and material handling. United Rentals had said that the planned acquisition would increase its capacity in key US regions.

The Financial Times reported earlier that H&E had accepted a bid from Herc Rentals valuing the company at almost $5.3 billion, including $1.4 billion of net debt. That cash-and-stock bid values H&E at about $500 million more than United Rentals’s all-cash offer.

— By John Lauerman (Bloomberg)