First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Sells 542 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. cut its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 45.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 650 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 542 shares during the quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in URI. Norges Bank bought a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $695,716,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in United Rentals by 77,674.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 887,407 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $556,138,000 after purchasing an additional 886,266 shares during the period. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC bought a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $330,989,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in United Rentals by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,221,228 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,564,722,000 after purchasing an additional 323,636 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its stake in United Rentals by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,051,365 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $740,624,000 after purchasing an additional 305,491 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their price target on United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $705.00 to $666.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Cfra Research upgraded United Rentals to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Citigroup lowered their target price on United Rentals from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on United Rentals from $732.00 to $786.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $753.15.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE:URI opened at $715.79 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $653.84 and its 200 day moving average is $694.62. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $525.91 and a fifty-two week high of $896.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.47, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.98.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $8.86 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.92 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $9.15 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 18.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $626.28, for a total transaction of $688,908.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,748 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,478,697.44. This trade represents a 11.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.86, for a total value of $499,748.88. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,355,957.06. This represents a 26.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.