United Rentals, Inc. $URI Shares Bought by HCR Wealth Advisors

Key Points

• HCR Wealth Advisors increased its stake in United Rentals (NYSE:URI) by 322% in Q4 to 4,093 shares, a position valued at about $3.31 million.
• Two executive VPs — William E. Grace and Michael D. Durand — sold 1,498 and 2,490 shares respectively in early February at roughly $791 per share, cutting their holdings by about 17.9% and 25.0%.
• The company’s board authorized a $5.00 billion stock buyback (up to 8.7% of outstanding shares) and raised the quarterly dividend to $1.97 ($7.88 annualized), a ~1.0% yield.

HCR Wealth Advisors raised its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 322.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,093 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,123 shares during the quarter. HCR Wealth Advisors' holdings in United Rentals were worth $3,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of URI. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 650.0% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 30 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In related news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,498 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $790.89, for a total transaction of $1,184,753.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,434,996.08. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 2,490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $791.14, for a total transaction of $1,969,938.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 7,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,900,322.12. The trade was a 25.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

URI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,123.00 to $1,041.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group upgraded shares of United Rentals from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $1,025.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Sunday, January 4th. Truist Financial set a $972.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $995.00 to $1,071.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $903.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $914.88.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI stock opened at $796.26 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $794.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $845.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.94. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $557.05 and a one year high of $1,021.47. The firm has a market cap of $50.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.68.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The construction company reported $11.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.86 by ($0.77). United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.35% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company had revenue of $4.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.24 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $11.59 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 28th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the construction company to purchase up to 8.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 11th were paid a dividend of $1.97 per share. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 11th. This is an increase from United Rentals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.79. United Rentals's payout ratio is currently 20.37%.

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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