Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 189,486 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,395 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.28% of United Rentals worth $108,655,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp now owns 100 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 71.4% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 48 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total transaction of $508,105.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on URI. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $793.00 target price for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $589.21.

United Rentals Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE URI traded down $10.77 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $655.97. The company's stock had a trading volume of 585,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 575,682. The stock has a market cap of $44.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.75. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $325.15 and a one year high of $732.37. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $680.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $568.14.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $10.85 by $0.41. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.63 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 16.91% and a return on equity of 36.80%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.74 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to reacquire up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is a positive change from United Rentals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.44%.

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.