GTS Securities LLC Sells 14,494 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

GTS Securities LLC lowered its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 97.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 416 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 14,494 shares during the period. GTS Securities LLC's holdings in United Rentals were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in United Rentals by 15.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 787,877 shares of the construction company's stock worth $637,968,000 after buying an additional 105,287 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 65.4% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 541 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter worth $368,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in United Rentals by 21.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,098 shares of the construction company's stock worth $773,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at about $16,253,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on URI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $780.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of United Rentals from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Cfra Research raised United Rentals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on United Rentals from $535.00 to $571.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded United Rentals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $702.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $753.15.

United Rentals Stock Performance

NYSE URI traded down $6.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $708.89. The company's stock had a trading volume of 729,807 shares, compared to its average volume of 601,416. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $525.91 and a 12 month high of $896.98. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $643.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $702.16. The company has a market cap of $46.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $8.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $8.92 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.21% and a net margin of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $9.15 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.54%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 1,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $626.28, for a total value of $688,908.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,748 shares in the company, valued at $5,478,697.44. The trade was a 11.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $705.86, for a total value of $499,748.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,921 shares in the company, valued at $1,355,957.06. The trade was a 26.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

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.