Impax Asset Management Group plc Increases Stake in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 4.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,058 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 2,104 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned about 0.08% of United Rentals worth $47,789,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Woodline Partners LP boosted its position in United Rentals by 40.0% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 5,518 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,458,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in United Rentals by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 348 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $262,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of United Rentals by 26.8% in the second quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,837 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 6.2% in the second quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 534 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

URI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp set a $950.00 price objective on United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $995.00 to $1,071.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of 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. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Rentals in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on United Rentals from $620.00 to $600.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $925.59.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI stock opened at $875.46 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm has a market cap of $55.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $854.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $889.65. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $525.91 and a one year high of $1,021.47.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its 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 net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 30.35%. The firm had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $11.59 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.97 per share. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.51%.

United Rentals announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to reacquire up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other United Rentals news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $790.89, for a total transaction of $1,184,753.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,872 shares in the company, valued at $5,434,996.08. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 7,458 shares in the company, valued at $5,900,322.12. This represents a 25.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

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.