McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) Sets New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• McGrath RentCorp shares reached a new 52-week high, trading around $128.90 and gaining 9.2%. The company reported quarterly EPS of $2.00, exceeding the $1.89 analyst consensus, while revenue also slightly topped estimates.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating, with an average price target of $140.00; one analyst rates the stock a Buy and two rate it a Hold.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.495 per share, equivalent to a $1.98 annualized payout and a 1.5% yield. Insiders sold 13,935 shares worth approximately $1.64 million over the past three months, while institutional investors own 92.05% of the stock.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday. The company traded as high as $127.09 and last traded at $128.8970, with a volume of 87,485 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $118.28.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of McGrath RentCorp in a report on Monday, October 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, McGrath RentCorp presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $140.00.

McGrath RentCorp Stock Up 9.2%

The stock has a market cap of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $113.75 and a 200 day moving average of $113.98.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $274.61 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $273.25 million. McGrath RentCorp had a return on equity of 12.75% and a net margin of 16.75%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that McGrath RentCorp will post 6.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McGrath RentCorp Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 16th were issued a $0.4950 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 16th. This represents a $1.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. McGrath RentCorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.51%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Philip B. Hawkins sold 4,435 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.91, for a total transaction of $536,235.85. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 13,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,616,687.61. The trade was a 24.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph Hanna sold 7,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.04, for a total value of $862,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 144,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,571,396.96. This represents a 4.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 13,935 shares of company stock worth $1,639,856. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On McGrath RentCorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp during the second quarter worth about $1,548,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new position in shares of McGrath RentCorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,370,000. Algert Global LLC lifted its stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 11.0% during the second quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 59,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,241,000 after buying an additional 5,910 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in McGrath RentCorp during the second quarter worth approximately $1,369,000. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in McGrath RentCorp during the second quarter worth approximately $22,833,000. 92.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About McGrath RentCorp

McGrath RentCorp was a business-to-business rental company that provided modular buildings, portable storage, electronic test equipment and related products. Its modular building offerings served customers needing temporary or permanent space, including classrooms, offices, healthcare facilities and other commercial or institutional applications.

Through brands such as Mobile Modular, the company rented relocatable buildings and portable storage units, while its TRS-RenTelco business provided electronic test and measurement equipment to telecommunications, electronics, aerospace, defense and other industrial customers.

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