Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan Grows Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 375.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,118 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,041 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $4,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its holdings in United Rentals by 650.0% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 30 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the second quarter worth about $28,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in United Rentals during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 42 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Price Performance

URI opened at $901.15 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $851.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $888.44. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $525.91 and a 12-month high of $1,021.47. The firm has a market cap of $56.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.86 by ($0.77). United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $11.59 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be given a $1.97 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is 18.51%.

United Rentals announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on URI. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on United Rentals from $1,090.00 to $950.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays decreased their price target on United Rentals from $620.00 to $600.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on United Rentals from $1,123.00 to $1,041.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of United Rentals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,025.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Sunday, January 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $925.59.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In other news, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total transaction of $1,969,938.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. This represents a 25.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About United Rentals

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.