United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $925.5882.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on URI. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $965.00 price target on United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 30th. 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. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 target price on United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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 note on Friday, January 23rd.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $736.27 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $867.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $880.48. United Rentals has a 1 year low of $525.91 and a 1 year high of $1,021.47. The company has a market capitalization of $46.39 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $11.59 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that United Rentals will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th were given a $1.97 dividend. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 11th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.37%.

United Rentals declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 28th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 8.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In related news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $790.89, for a total transaction of $1,184,753.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,872 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,434,996.08. This trade represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total value of $1,969,938.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 7,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. The trade was a 25.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United Rentals

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of URI. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at about $978,017,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in United Rentals by 71.3% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,874,127 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,411,968,000 after purchasing an additional 780,322 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in United Rentals by 22.8% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,402,524 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,247,762,000 after purchasing an additional 631,484 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 1,667.4% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 343,965 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $278,378,000 after purchasing an additional 324,503 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of United Rentals by 74.5% in the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 715,250 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $542,526,000 after buying an additional 305,378 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

United Rentals Company 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.