United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Stake Raised by EFG Asset Management North America Corp.

EFG Asset Management North America Corp. increased its holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 65.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,310 shares of the construction company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,698 shares during the period. EFG Asset Management North America Corp.'s holdings in United Rentals were worth $2,472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,246,092 shares of the construction company's stock worth $714,578,000 after purchasing an additional 56,948 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 58,829.4% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,043,051 shares of the construction company's stock worth $598,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,281 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 933,428 shares of the construction company's stock worth $414,974,000 after purchasing an additional 149,838 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 680,217 shares of the construction company's stock worth $302,404,000 after purchasing an additional 10,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of United Rentals by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 638,958 shares of the construction company's stock worth $284,061,000 after purchasing an additional 72,066 shares in the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Rentals

In other news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 8,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.63, for a total transaction of $5,862,199.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 103,400 shares in the company, valued at $72,341,742. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other United Rentals news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 8,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.63, for a total value of $5,862,199.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 103,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $72,341,742. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael D. Durand sold 559 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $674.56, for a total value of $377,079.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,052 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,431,557.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Price Performance

URI stock traded up $4.65 during trading on Friday, hitting $685.79. The company had a trading volume of 350,920 shares, compared to its average volume of 569,590. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $684.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $603.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The company has a market cap of $45.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.82. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $330.30 and a fifty-two week high of $732.37.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.35 by $0.80. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.44% and a net margin of 17.31%. United Rentals's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.95 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the construction company to repurchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. United Rentals's payout ratio is 17.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

URI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays raised their target price on United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of United Rentals in a report on Monday, April 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $600.79.

About United Rentals

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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