Banco Santander S.A. Purchases New Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 310 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in United Rentals by 6.3% during the fourth quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 14,855 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $10,464,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Retireful LLC bought a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $697,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 445,214 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $313,627,000 after purchasing an additional 6,787 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 196.5% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its stake in United Rentals by 1,067.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 59,879 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,486,000 after purchasing an additional 54,750 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE URI opened at $600.34 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $709.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $764.37. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $585.27 and a 12-month high of $896.98. The company has a market capitalization of $39.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued 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 net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. Analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.19%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is 18.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

URI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upgraded United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target 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. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $956.00 price objective (down from $963.00) on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $829.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total transaction of $701,910.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares in the company, valued at $4,390,128. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.