Revlon’s Surge Revives Memories of Hertz’s Wild 2020 Summer (1)

The 245% four-day surge by Revlon Inc., which filed for bankruptcy after amassing massive amounts of debt amid rampant competition, recalls another wild summer trade from back in the height of the pandemic: Hertz Global Holdings Inc.

Since Revlon crashed to an all-time low on Monday, the troubled cosmetics maker’s stock has soared 245% as speculators traded more than 350 million shares on bets of big returns. Sound familiar? Almost exactly two years ago, investors piled into Hertz after it decided to seek bankruptcy protection, triggering a frenzy that puzzled Wall Street since shareholders rarely get anything when companies ...