United Rentals (NYSE:URI) Price Target Raised to $790.00 at The Goldman Sachs Group

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) had its price target raised by The Goldman Sachs Group from $718.00 to $790.00 in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the construction company’s stock.

URI has been the subject of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on United Rentals from $494.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, BNP Paribas reissued an underperform rating and set a $485.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 5th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $589.21.

United Rentals Stock Down 0.7 %

United Rentals stock opened at $628.34 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.84. United Rentals has a 12 month low of $325.15 and a 12 month high of $732.37. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $679.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $570.39. 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 (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.85 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The business’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.74 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that United Rentals will post 43.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

United Rentals Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total transaction of $508,105.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its stake in United Rentals by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 21,568 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,588,000 after buying an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new position in United Rentals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,351,000. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. grew its stake in United Rentals by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. now owns 9,487 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,218,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its stake in United Rentals by 55.5% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 6,413 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,677,000 after buying an additional 2,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc purchased a new position in United Rentals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $22,529,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% 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.