UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp Raises Position in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Key Points

• UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp increased its stake in United Rentals by 8.6% in the first quarter, adding 1,257 shares and bringing its total holding to 15,838 shares worth about $11.5 million.
• United Rentals reported mixed quarterly results, with EPS of $9.71 and revenue of $3.98 billion both missing Wall Street expectations, though revenue still rose 7.2% year over year.
• Despite insider selling and a modest recent stock move, analysts remain broadly bullish on URI, with 14 Buy ratings and an average price target of $1,124.69.

UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp raised its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 8.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,838 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,257 shares during the quarter. UNIVEST FINANCIAL Corp's holdings in United Rentals were worth $11,539,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in URI. Gleason Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 269 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in United Rentals by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 967 shares of the construction company's stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC raised its holdings in United Rentals by 0.9% in the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 1,172 shares of the construction company's stock worth $854,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in United Rentals by 2.9% during the second quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 387 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Fearless Solutions LLC dba Best Invest lifted its position in United Rentals by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Fearless Solutions LLC dba Best Invest now owns 554 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 22,768 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $984.98, for a total value of $22,426,024.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,980 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $98,478,300.40. This represents a 18.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 306 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $954.99, for a total value of $292,226.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,479,732.62. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 26,088 shares of company stock valued at $25,628,877 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of URI traded up $8.02 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $1,096.69. The company had a trading volume of 278,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 442,038. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $1,029.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $902.01. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $701.59 and a 52-week high of $1,143.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.80.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last announced 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). The firm had revenue of $3.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.20 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 30.56%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $8.86 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 46.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $1.97 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

URI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,275.00 target price on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,209.00 to $1,421.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $1,150.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of United Rentals from $970.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of United Rentals from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,124.69.

United Rentals 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding URI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.