Callahan Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Callahan Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,575 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 286 shares during the quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $6,745,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in United Rentals by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,568 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,956,768,000 after purchasing an additional 85,325 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in United Rentals by 82,462.2% during the 3rd 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. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in United Rentals by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,566,802 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,264,326,000 after purchasing an additional 9,256 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew 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 valued at $862,110,000 after purchasing an additional 57,002 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in United Rentals by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 787,877 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $637,968,000 after purchasing an additional 105,287 shares in the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Rentals Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $741.10 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $48.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.68. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $596.48 and a 12-month high of $896.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $738.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $770.03.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly 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%. Equities research analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.93 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

URI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Argus raised their price objective on United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. 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 research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on United Rentals from $775.00 to $765.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $814.08.

About United Rentals

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.