Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Purchases 7,748 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 74.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,156 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 7,748 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $12,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in United Rentals by 11.7% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 9,203 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $7,492,000 after purchasing an additional 964 shares during the period. Retireful LLC acquired a new position in United Rentals in the third quarter valued at about $697,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 1,067.5% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 59,879 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $48,486,000 after acquiring an additional 54,750 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its stake in United Rentals by 196.5% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 1,420 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 941 shares during the period. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 428.8% during the third quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 1,692 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,370,000 after buying an additional 1,372 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on URI. Baird R W raised shares of United Rentals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird raised shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $400.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $805.08.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE:URI opened at $770.81 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.69. United Rentals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $553.22 and a twelve month high of $896.98. The company has a fifty day moving average of $778.79 and a 200-day moving average of $761.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $11.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $12.49 by ($0.69). The company had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.73% and a net margin of 17.12%. United Rentals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $11.73 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.46 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 13th were issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, November 13th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 17.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Rentals

In related news, SVP Anthony S. Leopold sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $823.24, for a total transaction of $740,916.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,682,702.56. The trade was a 30.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

About United Rentals

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.