UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Buys 1,257 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. $URI

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp raised its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 8.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,838 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 1,257 shares during the period. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $11,539,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 548 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $977.86, for a total transaction of $535,867.28. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 1,865 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,823,708.90. The trade was a 22.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 22,768 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $984.98, for a total transaction of $22,426,024.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 99,980 shares in the company, valued at approximately $98,478,300.40. This trade represents a 18.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 26,088 shares of company stock valued at $25,628,877. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

URI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $1,030.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,275.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of United Rentals from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,020.00 to $1,195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,130.00 to $1,210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,124.69.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE URI traded up $8.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $1,096.69. The company had a trading volume of 278,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 442,038. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $701.59 and a 12 month high of $1,143.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.79. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,029.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $902.01.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.47 by ($1.76). The company had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 30.56%. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.86 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 46.7 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a $1.97 dividend. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

United Rentals Profile

United Rentals, Inc (NYSE: URI) is a leading equipment rental company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The firm provides rental solutions and related services to construction, industrial, commercial, and municipal customers. Its business model centers on providing access to a broad fleet of equipment on a short-term or long-term basis, enabling customers to avoid the capital expenditure of ownership and to scale equipment use to match project needs.

The company’s product and service offerings span general construction equipment and a range of specialty categories, including aerial work platforms, earthmoving and excavation machines, material handling equipment, pumps, power and HVAC systems, trench and shoring solutions, and tools.