DNB Asset Management AS Boosts Stake in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

DNB Asset Management AS lifted its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,483 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 819 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $17,645,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,494,303 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,646,208,000 after purchasing an additional 72,267 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 71.3% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,874,127 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,411,968,000 after acquiring an additional 780,322 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 6.1% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,231,108 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $927,517,000 after acquiring an additional 70,870 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of United Rentals by 3.7% in the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,030,232 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $776,177,000 after acquiring an additional 36,991 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of United Rentals during the second quarter valued at $776,102,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other United Rentals news, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 7,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. This trade represents a 25.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $1,184,753.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,434,996.08. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

United Rentals Stock Down 2.4%

URI opened at $837.85 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $871.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $889.52. United Rentals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $525.91 and a twelve month high of $1,021.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.86 by ($0.77). The company had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.24 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $11.59 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

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

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $1.97 per share. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. 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 currently 20.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on URI. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $965.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. KeyCorp set a $950.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $995.00 to $1,071.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $925.59.

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.