United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) Short Interest Update

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,070,000 shares, an increase of 27.0% from the April 30th total of 1,630,000 shares. Approximately 3.2% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 732,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at United Rentals

In other news, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 708 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.86, for a total transaction of $499,748.88. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,921 shares in the company, valued at $1,355,957.06. The trade was a 26.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 1,100 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $626.28, for a total value of $688,908.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,748 shares in the company, valued at $5,478,697.44. The trade was a 11.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of United Rentals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rialto Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in United Rentals by 241.7% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 41 shares of the construction company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in United Rentals by 1,266.7% in the first quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC now owns 41 shares of the construction company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in United Rentals in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company's stock.

United Rentals Price Performance

Shares of URI traded up $7.84 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $707.02. 302,166 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 596,855. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $650.15 and a 200-day moving average of $697.32. United Rentals has a one year low of $525.91 and a one year high of $896.98. The firm has a market cap of $45.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $8.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.92 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.21% and a net margin of 16.78%. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.61 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.15 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that United Rentals will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio is currently 18.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on URI. Bank of America lowered their target price on United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded United Rentals from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $702.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on United Rentals from $974.00 to $921.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on United Rentals from $780.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on United Rentals from $732.00 to $786.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $753.15.

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.