United Rentals, Inc. $URI Shares Sold by LGT Capital Partners LTD.

LGT Capital Partners LTD. trimmed its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 27.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,970 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 14,909 shares during the period. United Rentals comprises approximately 1.8% of LGT Capital Partners LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. LGT Capital Partners LTD. owned approximately 0.06% of United Rentals worth $37,203,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 650.0% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 30 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in United Rentals in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $5,434,996.08. The trade was a 17.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total transaction of $1,969,938.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. The trade was a 25.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $965.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 30th. 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Truist Financial set a $972.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on shares of United Rentals from $1,090.00 to $950.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $925.59.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI opened at $881.61 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $55.54 billion, a PE ratio of 22.79, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $867.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $889.94. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $525.91 and a 52 week high of $1,021.47.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.86 by ($0.77). United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $11.59 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 11th will be given a dividend of $1.97 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 11th. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 20.37%.

About United Rentals

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.