NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) May 4, 2010--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today said that its ratings on New Jersey-based Avis Budget Group Inc. (B+/Stable/--) are unaffected at this time by the car rental company's announcement that it is interested in making an offer for Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. (DTAG; B-/Watch Pos/--). Unlike Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (B/Watch Pos/--), Avis Budget already has a leisure-oriented brand, so an acquisition of DTAG would not be as strategic for Avis Budget as it would be for Hertz. Avis Budget made its announcement after reviewing information related to Hertz's definitive agreement to acquire DTAG for $1.2 billion, which it announced on April 26, 2010. Hertz plans to finance the purchase through a
