United Rentals, Inc. $URI Stake Lessened by Leibman Financial Services Inc.

Leibman Financial Services Inc. lessened its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 37.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,967 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,758 shares during the quarter. United Rentals comprises about 1.7% of Leibman Financial Services Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Leibman Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $2,401,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in United Rentals during the second quarter valued at $776,102,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in United Rentals by 71.3% during the 2nd 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 during the period. Capital International Investors boosted its position in United Rentals by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,402,524 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,247,762,000 after acquiring an additional 631,484 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in United Rentals by 74.5% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 715,250 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $542,526,000 after acquiring an additional 305,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 66.5% in the 3rd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 484,450 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $462,485,000 after purchasing an additional 193,416 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

URI has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group upgraded shares of United Rentals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,025.00 target price for the company in a research report on Sunday, January 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $965.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,090.00 to $950.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $925.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Rentals

In related news, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total value of $1,969,938.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 7,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. The trade was a 25.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,434,996.08. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

United Rentals Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $720.91 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $854.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $875.33. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $525.91 and a 52 week high of $1,021.47. The stock has a market cap of $45.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.64, a PEG ratio of 1.17 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 the consensus estimate of $11.86 by ($0.77). The business had revenue of $4.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.24 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 30.35%. United Rentals’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $11.59 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th were issued a dividend of $1.97 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is an increase from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 20.37%.

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

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.