Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,970 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 954 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $9,158,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors now owns 7,624 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,372,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. now owns 5,238 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,004,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 189,486 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $108,655,000 after buying an additional 11,395 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,770 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,015,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $827,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of United Rentals 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

URI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of United Rentals in a report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial began coverage on shares of United Rentals in a report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $793.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $589.21.

United Rentals Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $632.88 on Friday. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $325.15 and a one year high of $732.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $680.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $569.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.84.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.85 by $0.41. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.63 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $9.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 14th were issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. This is an increase from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 13th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.44%.

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.