Baird Financial Group Inc. Sells 771 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Baird Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 39,064 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 771 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.06% of United Rentals worth $29,431,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in United Rentals by 22.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 661,251 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $414,406,000 after acquiring an additional 120,449 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,422,036 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,651,390,000 after acquiring an additional 29,501 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in United Rentals by 3.5% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 460,871 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $288,828,000 after acquiring an additional 15,657 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in United Rentals by 33.0% during the first quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 459 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in United Rentals by 10.2% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 115,768 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $72,552,000 after acquiring an additional 10,723 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:URI opened at $796.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $889.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $851.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.90. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $525.91 and a one year high of $1,021.47. The firm has a market cap of $50.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.68.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The construction company reported $11.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.43 by ($0.73). The firm had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.16 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 15.83% and a return on equity of 31.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $11.80 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 12th were given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 12th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on URI shares. Argus set a $935.00 target price on United Rentals in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,000.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $900.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of United Rentals from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $968.94.

United Rentals Profile

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.