United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Stake Lowered by Foundry Partners LLC

Foundry Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,262 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 5,510 shares during the period. United Rentals accounts for 1.6% of Foundry Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Foundry Partners LLC owned 0.07% of United Rentals worth $25,954,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of URI. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at $586,415,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 104,089.8% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,341,964 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $476,961,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340,676 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 58,829.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,043,051 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $598,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,281 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 49.1% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 672,534 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $238,890,000 after purchasing an additional 221,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,179,328 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $2,905,379,000 after purchasing an additional 186,931 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

URI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $793.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $589.21.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI traded down $4.54 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $628.34. 572,680 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 458,523. The stock's fifty day moving average is $679.93 and its 200 day moving average is $572.43. The stock has a market cap of $42.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.81. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $325.15 and a 1-year high of $732.37.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $10.85 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $3.73 billion during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. This is a positive change from United Rentals's previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.44%.

United Rentals announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

United Rentals Company 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.

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