Man Group plc Acquires New Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Man Group plc purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 18,479 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $13,017,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in United Rentals during the 4th quarter worth $695,716,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC bought a new position in shares of United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth about $330,989,000. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of United Rentals by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,221,228 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,564,722,000 after acquiring an additional 323,636 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,051,365 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $740,624,000 after acquiring an additional 305,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 105.6% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 546,165 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $384,740,000 after acquiring an additional 280,502 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total value of $701,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares in the company, valued at $4,390,128. This represents a 13.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.86, for a total value of $499,748.88. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,355,957.06. The trade was a 26.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 2,908 shares of company stock valued at $1,890,567. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Stock Down 2.7%

URI stock traded down $19.33 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $696.14. 487,109 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 600,785. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $631.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $709.07. The company has a market cap of $45.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.70. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $525.91 and a 52 week high of $896.98.

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

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.03%. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

URI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $732.00 to $786.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded United Rentals from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $705.00 to $666.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Cfra Research raised United Rentals to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their target price on United Rentals from $974.00 to $921.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $757.38.

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.