Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 17,838 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 11.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 143,886 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 17,838 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $104,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital World Investors boosted its position in United Rentals by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,708,877 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,192,357,000 after purchasing an additional 30,263 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in United Rentals by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,343,981 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,087,711,000 after purchasing an additional 28,895 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at about $978,017,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its position in shares of United Rentals by 5.6% during the third quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,088,209 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,038,870,000 after buying an additional 57,977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 774,347 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $631,459,000 after buying an additional 29,675 shares in the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE:URI traded up $8.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $1,096.69. 278,451 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 442,038. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.74. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $701.59 and a 52-week high of $1,143.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.79. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $1,029.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $902.01.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.47 by ($1.76). The company had revenue of $3.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.20 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.56% and a net margin of 15.32%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 46.7 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were paid a $1.97 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.10%.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other news, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 548 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $977.86, for a total value of $535,867.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,865 shares in the company, valued at $1,823,708.90. This trade represents a 22.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 22,768 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $984.98, for a total value of $22,426,024.64. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $98,478,300.40. This trade represents a 18.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 26,088 shares of company stock worth $25,628,877. 0.47% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

URI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $600.00 to $715.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of United Rentals from $1,130.00 to $1,210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on United Rentals from $850.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on United Rentals from $1,145.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,124.69.

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.