Lazard Asset Management LLC Acquires 10,996 Shares of McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC)

Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Free Report) by 1,001.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 12,094 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,996 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in McGrath RentCorp were worth $1,352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MGRC. Eminence Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of McGrath RentCorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,898,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in McGrath RentCorp by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,896,943 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $212,116,000 after acquiring an additional 649,567 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of McGrath RentCorp during the fourth quarter valued at $13,179,000. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 127.1% during the fourth quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC now owns 204,806 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 114,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 729.1% during the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 118,660 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,269,000 after purchasing an additional 104,348 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at McGrath RentCorp

In related news, CEO Joseph F. Hanna sold 5,567 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.89, for a total transaction of $606,190.63. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 176,897 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,262,314.33. This trade represents a 3.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP John P. Skenesky sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.32, for a total value of $278,300.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 8,692 shares of the company's stock, valued at $967,593.44. This represents a 22.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 13,871 shares of company stock worth $1,506,731 in the last quarter. 1.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

McGrath RentCorp Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of MGRC opened at $115.74 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $115.39. The stock has a market cap of $2.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.66. McGrath RentCorp has a 52 week low of $95.50 and a 52 week high of $129.93.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.13. McGrath RentCorp had a return on equity of 13.68% and a net margin of 25.44%. The firm had revenue of $195.42 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $189.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.93 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that McGrath RentCorp will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McGrath RentCorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th were issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 16th. This is a boost from McGrath RentCorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. McGrath RentCorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised McGrath RentCorp from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th.

McGrath RentCorp Company Profile

McGrath RentCorp operates as a business to business rental company in the United States and internationally. It rents and sells relocatable modular buildings, portable storage containers, and electronic test equipment. The company operates through four segments: Mobile Modular, Portable Storage, TRS-RenTelco, and Enviroplex.

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