Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Lowers Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lowered its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 10.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 502 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 59 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $288,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in United Rentals by 6.4% in the third quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $9,588,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,351,000. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. lifted its position in United Rentals by 0.6% in the third quarter. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. now owns 9,487 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $4,218,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its stake in shares of United Rentals by 55.5% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 6,413 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,677,000 after buying an additional 2,289 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:URI opened at $667.00 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $44.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.53, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.75. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $325.15 and a 1 year high of $732.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $679.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $576.07.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.35 by $0.80. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.95 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.13 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the construction company to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is currently 18.44%.

Insider Activity

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on URI. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on United Rentals in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $589.21.

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.