TIAA Trust National Association Increases Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 596.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,367 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 10,591 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $8,712,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in URI. TD Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 207.8% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc. now owns 234,366 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $165,097,000 after purchasing an additional 158,214 shares in the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. grew its holdings in United Rentals by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 4,249 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,992,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd purchased a new position in United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth $993,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in United Rentals by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 136,087 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $95,865,000 after buying an additional 11,141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth $1,658,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total value of $701,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,390,128. This represents a 13.78 % 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 this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on URI shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on United Rentals from $775.00 to $765.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report 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 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $705.00 to $666.00 in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $804.15.

United Rentals Price Performance

United Rentals stock opened at $653.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $694.07 and a 200-day moving average of $756.62. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $585.27 and a 52-week high of $896.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.87, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.76.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.65 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. As a group, analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.48%.

United Rentals 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.