United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Stock Rated "Moderate Buy" by Wall Street Analysts

Key Points

• Wall Street’s consensus rating is “Moderate Buy” for United Rentals, with 15 of 18 analysts recommending buy and an average 12-month price target of $1,288.19.
• United Rentals reported strong quarterly results, earning $15.55 per share versus the $13.97 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 15.7% year over year to $4.89 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.97 per share, equivalent to an annualized $7.88 payout and a 0.7% yield; institutional investors own 96.26% of the stock.

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,288.19.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,245.00 to $1,355.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of United Rentals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, October 10th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded United Rentals from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $1,320.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday, September 14th.

United Rentals Stock Performance

United Rentals stock opened at $1,121.89 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.73. United Rentals has a 12 month low of $701.59 and a 12 month high of $1,179.18. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $1,044.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $965.63. The company has a market cap of $69.47 billion, a PE ratio of 24.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.83.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The construction company reported $15.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $13.97 by $1.58. United Rentals had a net margin of 16.33% and a return on equity of 33.47%. The company had revenue of $4.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $11.70 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 15.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that United Rentals will post 49.65 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $1.97 per share. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio is presently 17.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On United Rentals

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals during the second quarter valued at $5,816,326,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter worth about $944,196,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter worth about $716,129,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter worth about $412,860,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in United Rentals in the 2nd quarter valued at about $411,896,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Company Profile

United Rentals, Inc is an equipment rental company serving construction, industrial, infrastructure, utilities, government and other commercial customers. The company provides access to equipment and related services through a network of rental locations, helping customers manage projects without purchasing and maintaining all of the equipment they need.

Its rental fleet includes aerial work platforms, earthmoving equipment, material-handling equipment, general construction tools, trucks and trailers, and light-duty equipment.

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