United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Shares Sold by New England Research & Management Inc.

New England Research & Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,140 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 420 shares during the quarter. United Rentals accounts for approximately 2.7% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $5,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 31.9% during the 2nd quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 563 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $364,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $780,000. Forsta AP Fonden raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 14,600 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $10,528,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of United Rentals by 241.2% during the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,859 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,504,000 after buying an additional 3,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BDF Gestion acquired a new stake in United Rentals in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,998,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other news, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 360 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $690.00, for a total transaction of $248,400.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,822,100. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on URI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $790.00 to $905.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on United Rentals from $565.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Citigroup started coverage on United Rentals in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $745.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on United Rentals from $780.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on United Rentals in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $750.00 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $694.46.

United Rentals Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of URI stock traded up $13.30 during trading on Monday, hitting $802.82. 590,689 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 547,810. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $737.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $696.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.68. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $387.01 and a 52-week high of $826.24.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The construction company reported $10.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.48 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $3.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 35.87% and a net margin of 17.35%. The company’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $9.88 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 14th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.66%.

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.