Bank of New York Mellon Corp Cuts Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon trimmed its United Rentals stake by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,030 shares and still holding 363,321 shares worth about $294 million.
• United Rentals reported mixed first-quarter earnings, with EPS of $9.71 missing Wall Street’s $11.47 estimate and revenue of $3.99 billion coming in below expectations, though revenue still rose 7.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with several firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus; meanwhile, the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $1.97 per share.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp decreased its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 363,321 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 9,030 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned about 0.58% of United Rentals worth $294,043,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aventura Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in United Rentals in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Trading Up 2.6%

URI opened at $1,083.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $879.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $850.87. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $682.08 and a 1-year high of $1,091.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.81.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $9.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $11.47 by ($1.76). The business had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.20 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.56% and a net margin of 15.32%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.86 earnings per share. Analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 47.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $1.97 dividend. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. United Rentals's payout ratio is presently 20.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

URI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $850.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Rentals from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $970.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $1,030.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,013.63.

Insider Activity

In other United Rentals news, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 306 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $954.99, for a total value of $292,226.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 5,738 shares in the company, valued at $5,479,732.62. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Craig Adam Pintoff sold 2,466 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $963.00, for a total transaction of $2,374,758.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,774 shares in the company, valued at $14,227,362. The trade was a 14.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,088 shares of company stock valued at $25,628,877. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Profile

United Rentals, Inc NYSE: URI is a leading equipment rental company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The firm provides rental solutions and related services to construction, industrial, commercial, and municipal customers. Its business model centers on providing access to a broad fleet of equipment on a short-term or long-term basis, enabling customers to avoid the capital expenditure of ownership and to scale equipment use to match project needs.

The company's product and service offerings span general construction equipment and a range of specialty categories, including aerial work platforms, earthmoving and excavation machines, material handling equipment, pumps, power and HVAC systems, trench and shoring solutions, and tools.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding URI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.