United Rentals (NYSE:URI) Earns “Market Perform” Rating from Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer restated their market perform rating on shares of United Rentals (NYSE:URI) in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on United Rentals from $720.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an underperform rating and issued a $485.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $600.79.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE URI opened at $712.62 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $47.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.84. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $682.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $582.31. United Rentals has a 1-year low of $325.15 and a 1-year high of $732.37.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.35 by $0.80. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 17.31% and a return on equity of 36.44%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $7.95 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that United Rentals will post 43.54 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to purchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 17.66%.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total transaction of $508,105.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Rentals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the 1st quarter worth $235,000. Claret Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the first quarter worth about $226,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 15.9% during the first quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 51,162 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $36,894,000 after buying an additional 7,000 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 942.6% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 3,920 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,827,000 after buying an additional 3,544 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Seascape Capital Management acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 1st quarter valued at about $230,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.