Bfsg LLC Buys 343 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Bfsg LLC raised its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 15.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,519 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $1,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 58,829.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,043,051 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $598,106,000 after buying an additional 1,041,281 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in United Rentals by 88.1% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 362,151 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $161,001,000 after buying an additional 169,586 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 19.1% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 933,428 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $414,974,000 after purchasing an additional 149,838 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in United Rentals during the third quarter valued at $40,634,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in United Rentals by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 638,958 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $284,061,000 after buying an additional 72,066 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on URI shares. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $485.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 5th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $589.21.

United Rentals Stock Down 0.9 %

United Rentals stock traded down $6.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $655.19. 640,540 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 582,469. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market cap of $44.01 billion, a PE ratio of 18.53, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.84. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $325.15 and a one year high of $732.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $679.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $575.51.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.39 by $0.76. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.13 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 18.44%.

United Rentals announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About United Rentals

United Rentals, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental company. It operates in two segments, General Rentals and Specialty. The General Rentals segment rents general construction and industrial equipment includes backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment, and material handling equipment; aerial work platforms, such as boom and scissor lifts; and general tools and light equipment comprising pressure washers, water pumps, and power tools for construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and government entities.