United Rentals, Inc. $URI Shares Purchased by London & Capital Asset Management Ltd

London & Capital Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 26.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 39,133 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,183 shares during the period. United Rentals accounts for 2.7% of London & Capital Asset Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. London & Capital Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $37,362,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in United Rentals by 650.0% in the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 30 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in United Rentals in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of United Rentals during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $790.89, for a total value of $1,184,753.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,434,996.08. The trade was a 17.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total value of $1,969,938.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,458 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,900,322.12. This represents a 25.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

URI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on United Rentals from $1,090.00 to $950.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,123.00 to $1,041.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group upgraded shares of United Rentals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,025.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Sunday, January 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $965.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $925.59.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI opened at $837.85 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.78 billion, a PE ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $871.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $889.02. 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 issued its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company’s revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $11.59 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, January 28th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 8.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $1.97 per share. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a dividend 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.