Swiss National Bank Sells 7,600 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 213,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 7,600 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $122,425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of URI. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. raised its position in United Rentals by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 4,124 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,834,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in United Rentals by 4.7% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 113,793 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $50,589,000 after acquiring an additional 5,117 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC grew its holdings in United Rentals by 14.4% during the 3rd quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 548 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. increased its position in United Rentals by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 33,849 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $15,048,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Finally, Kennedy Investment Group raised its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kennedy Investment Group now owns 2,712 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,206,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on URI. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of United Rentals in a report on Monday, January 8th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on United Rentals from $720.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. BNP Paribas reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $485.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $600.79.

United Rentals Trading Up 0.3 %

NYSE URI opened at $666.66 on Friday. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $325.15 and a 12-month high of $732.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $683.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $586.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $44.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.82.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.35 by $0.80. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.44% and a net margin of 17.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.95 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.52 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.66%.

United Rentals announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total transaction of $508,105.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 8,379 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.63, for a total transaction of $5,862,199.77. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $72,341,742. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,713 shares of company stock worth $6,747,384. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Rentals 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.