Capital International Investors Has $522.08 Million Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Key Points

• Capital International Investors sharply cut its United Rentals stake by 81.1% in the fourth quarter, but still held 644,736 shares worth about $522.1 million.
• Insider selling was notable, with CEO Matthew John Flannery and SVP Joli L. Gross both selling shares recently; insiders sold 26,088 shares worth about $25.6 million over the last 90 days.
• Analysts remain generally constructive on URI, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $1,013.63, while the company also reported mixed quarterly results and raised its annual dividend to an annualized $7.88 per share.

Capital International Investors decreased its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 81.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 644,736 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 2,757,788 shares during the period. Capital International Investors owned about 1.02% of United Rentals worth $522,079,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. XML Financial LLC bought a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Havemeyer Place LP bought a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,246,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in United Rentals by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in United Rentals by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 19,729 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $15,967,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinebridge Investments LLC bought a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $5,225,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 22,768 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $984.98, for a total transaction of $22,426,024.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 99,980 shares of the company's stock, valued at $98,478,300.40. This trade represents a 18.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 306 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $954.99, for a total transaction of $292,226.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 5,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,479,732.62. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 26,088 shares of company stock worth $25,628,877 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

URI has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $1,030.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $600.00 to $715.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $903.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $850.00 to $1,050.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,041.00 to $1,119.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,013.63.

United Rentals Price Performance

URI stock opened at $1,067.62 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $885.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $852.71. The company has a market capitalization of $66.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.24, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.81. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $682.08 and a 52-week high of $1,091.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.80.

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

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were 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 of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.10%.

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.

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