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    Texas First Rentals, A Division of Holt Cat, Acquires Rental One

    Dec. 13, 2022
    Texas First Rentals, a division of Holt Cat, has acquired Rental One, a full-service equipment and storage container rental company offering construction equipment and supplies in 15 locations throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and Central Texas.
    Texas First Cat Rentals Logo 6398aa1873065

    Texas First Rentals, a division of Holt Cat, announced it has acquired Rental One, a full-service equipment and storage container rental company offering a complete line of construction equipment and supplies in 15 locations throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and Central Texas regions.

    Texas First Rentals, a construction equipment rental company, offers rental solutions through its full line of aerial, earthmoving and portable power equipment. Texas First Rentals provides boom lifts, scissor lifts, excavators, generators, pumps and trench safety equipment.

    “Rental One is an excellent strategic and cultural fit that complements our existing products and services,” said CEO and general manager of Holt, Peter J. Holt. “More importantly, Rental One is a multi-generational, family-owned Texas company. As a family-owned business ourselves, we know the value of such an organization and what that means to our customers.”

    Rental One, founded in 2004 in Colleyville, Texas, with equipment rental roots going back to the 1950s, is a family-owned, full-service equipment and storage container rental company offering a full line of well-maintained, quality construction equipment and concrete, safety, erosion control and construction supplies throughout its locations.

    “Our team has worked to build a successful business with meaningful relationships that span three generations,” said Rental One president Mike O’Neal. “Our customers will benefit from a broader range of products and combined expertise as we join the Texas First Rentals team. We continue to be committed to providing customers with the best equipment and reliable service they have grown to know.”

    Family history

    Founder O’Neal is the son of Don O’Neal, who led A-1 Rentals, one of the largest equipment rental companies in the United States before being acquired by NationsRent in 1998. A-1 was originally founded by Don O’Neal’s father, Ray O’Neal, making Mike O’Neal a third-generation owner. Holt CEO Peter J. Holt is great grandson of Benjamin Holt, co-founder of Holt Manufacturing, which later evolved into Caterpillar.

    With this acquisition, the 300 current Rental One employees, including the leadership team, will become employees of Texas First Rentals and will continue to operate from current Rental One locations.

    “I’m confident joining a values-based organization is a positive move for us all,” said O’Neal. “We look forward to collaborating with the Texas First Rentals team to build upon our mutual success.”

    Gary Stansberry of The Stansberry Firm LLC served as an advisor to Texas First Rentals on the transaction. TM Capital served as exclusive financial advisor to Rental One.

    This acquisition will allow Texas First Rentals to expand its presence to a total of 40 locations in highly attractive regions poised for future growth. For more information about the products and services available through Texas First Rentals, visit www.texasfirstrentals.com. 

    About the Author

    Michael Roth | Editor

    Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.