United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Shares Sold by Empirical Finance LLC

Empirical Finance LLC lowered its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,354 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 22 shares during the quarter. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $1,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in URI. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Rentals by 82,462.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,606,661 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,300,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604,715 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of United Rentals by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 787,877 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $637,968,000 after purchasing an additional 105,287 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in United Rentals by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,568 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,956,768,000 after buying an additional 85,325 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 10.5% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 704,145 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $570,167,000 after buying an additional 66,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in United Rentals by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 996,014 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $862,110,000 after buying an additional 57,002 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Stock Performance

United Rentals stock opened at $740.69 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $48.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $752.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $770.13. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $596.48 and a 1-year high of $896.98.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.65 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.21% and a net margin of 16.78%. On average, analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.93 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on URI shares. Bank of America raised their target price on United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on United Rentals from $940.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $956.00 target price (down previously from $963.00) on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised their price target on shares of United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $814.08.

United Rentals Company Profile

United Rentals, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental company. It operates in two segments, General Rentals and Specialty. The General Rentals segment rents general construction and industrial equipment includes backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment, and material handling equipment; aerial work platforms, such as boom and scissor lifts; and general tools and light equipment comprising pressure washers, water pumps, and power tools for construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and government entities.