United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Shares Sold by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS decreased its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 28.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,339 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 6,756 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $12,214,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in United Rentals by 17.7% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 2,383 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,930,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of United Rentals by 4.4% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 3,914 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co raised its position in shares of United Rentals by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 1,207 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $977,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in United Rentals by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 2,925 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,368,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals in the 3rd quarter worth about $340,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on URI. Citigroup decreased their target price on United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 21st. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. 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 note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $804.15.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of United Rentals stock opened at $627.10 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $686.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $754.94. 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 cap of $40.97 billion, a PE ratio of 16.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.76.

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

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $1.79 dividend. This is an increase from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is currently 18.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 6,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,390,128. The trade was a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.53% 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.