Boston Partners Purchases 21,879 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Key Points

• Boston Partners increased its stake in United Rentals, Inc. by 5.6%, acquiring an additional 21,879 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 409,872 shares worth $255.9 million.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on United Rentals, with price targets ranging from $560 to $974, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $834.64.
• United Rentals reported a quarterly EPS of $10.47, missing estimates, but recorded revenue growth of 4.5% year-over-year, amounting to $3.94 billion for the quarter.

Boston Partners raised its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 5.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 409,872 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,879 shares during the period. Boston Partners owned 0.63% of United Rentals worth $255,927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. National Pension Service raised its position in United Rentals by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 192,370 shares of the construction company's stock worth $120,558,000 after purchasing an additional 24,557 shares during the period. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in United Rentals by 67.2% during the first quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. now owns 1,120 shares of the construction company's stock worth $702,000 after acquiring an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 2.0% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 68,042 shares of the construction company's stock worth $42,656,000 after buying an additional 1,316 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 3.0% in the first quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 22,064 shares of the construction company's stock worth $13,828,000 after buying an additional 640 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 560.0% in the first quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 66 shares of the construction company's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Trading Down 1.2%

United Rentals stock traded down $11.14 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $910.31. The company had a trading volume of 372,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 626,014. The firm has a market cap of $58.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.86. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $525.91 and a 1 year high of $933.32. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $801.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $708.49.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The construction company reported $10.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.54 by ($0.07). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.11% and a return on equity of 32.01%. The business had revenue of $3.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $10.70 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. United Rentals's payout ratio is currently 18.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $780.00 to $835.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $810.00 target price (up from $740.00) on shares of United Rentals in a report on Tuesday, June 24th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $865.00 to $960.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of United Rentals from $974.00 to $921.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of United Rentals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $834.64.

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.