William Grace Sells 1,498 Shares of United Rentals (NYSE:URI) Stock

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) EVP William Grace sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were 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 directly owned 6,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,434,996.08. The trade was a 17.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI opened at $875.46 on Wednesday. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $525.91 and a 12-month high of $1,021.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $854.55 and its 200-day moving average is $889.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $11.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 8.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.97 per share. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 11th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on URI shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $995.00 to $1,071.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. KeyCorp set a $950.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird set a $970.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Rentals in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, United Rentals has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $925.59.

Institutional Trading of United Rentals

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in United Rentals by 1.0% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,494,303 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,646,208,000 after buying an additional 72,267 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,402,524 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,247,762,000 after acquiring an additional 631,484 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,678,614 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,557,158,000 after acquiring an additional 168,685 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in United Rentals by 71.3% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,874,127 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,411,968,000 after purchasing an additional 780,322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in United Rentals by 6.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,315,086 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,255,460,000 after purchasing an additional 83,978 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Company Profile

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.