Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Increases Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 40.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,017 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 1,439 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in United Rentals were worth $3,534,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Landing Point Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $719,000. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its stake in United Rentals by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 12,501 shares of the construction company's stock worth $8,806,000 after purchasing an additional 1,547 shares during the last quarter. Norinchukin Bank The lifted its stake in United Rentals by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 3,230 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,275,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. Ossiam lifted its stake in United Rentals by 3,727.8% during the fourth quarter. Ossiam now owns 1,378 shares of the construction company's stock worth $971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in United Rentals by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 33,435 shares of the construction company's stock worth $23,553,000 after purchasing an additional 5,223 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.26% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on URI shares. Baird R W upgraded United Rentals from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Bank of America dropped their price target on United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company 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 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded United Rentals from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $705.00 to $666.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Rentals currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $725.69.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total transaction of $701,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,390,128. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

United Rentals Trading Down 2.0 %

United Rentals stock traded down $12.66 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $634.70. 812,363 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 592,222. United Rentals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $525.91 and a twelve month high of $896.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.47 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.72. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $615.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $725.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $8.86 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $8.92 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.61 billion. Research analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $1.79 per share. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. United Rentals's payout ratio is 18.54%.

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.