KBC Group NV Buys 14,415 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Key Points

• KBC Group NV increased its stake in United Rentals by 93.9% in the first quarter, buying 14,415 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 29,771 shares worth about $21.69 million.
• United Rentals has seen mostly bullish analyst sentiment, with 14 Buy ratings and an average Moderate Buy rating; several firms also raised price targets, though Weiss Ratings downgraded it to Hold.
• The company reported mixed quarterly results, missing EPS and revenue estimates despite year-over-year revenue growth of 7.2%, while insiders also sold shares during the quarter.

KBC Group NV lifted its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 93.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,771 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 14,415 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in United Rentals were worth $21,690,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in United Rentals in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in United Rentals by 121.1% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 42 shares of the construction company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

URI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $903.00 target price on shares of United Rentals and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on United Rentals from $1,030.00 to $1,165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,101.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut United Rentals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,140.00.

United Rentals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $1,010.04 on Wednesday. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $701.59 and a 1 year high of $1,143.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $63.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.79. The company's 50-day moving average is $1,043.86 and its 200 day moving average is $913.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.74.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $9.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.47 by ($1.76). United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.56% and a net margin of 15.32%.The company had revenue of $3.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.86 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 46.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other news, EVP Craig Adam Pintoff sold 2,466 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $963.00, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 14.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 548 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $977.86, for a total value of $535,867.28. Following the sale, the vice president owned 1,865 shares in the company, valued at $1,823,708.90. This represents a 22.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,088 shares of company stock worth $25,628,877. 0.47% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Rentals Company 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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