United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $589.21.

URI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Truist Financial started coverage on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $793.00 price objective on the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Rentals

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in United Rentals in the third quarter worth $25,000. First Financial Corp IN acquired a new position in United Rentals in the first quarter worth $25,000. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 1,900.0% in the third quarter. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp now owns 100 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 71.4% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 48 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of URI stock opened at $628.34 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $42.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. United Rentals has a fifty-two week low of $325.15 and a fifty-two week high of $732.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $679.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $572.43.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.85 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 36.80%. United Rentals’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.74 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that United Rentals will post 43.13 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 14th were paid a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 13th. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 18.44%.

United Rentals announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Company 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.