United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) COO Sells $377,079.04 in Stock

United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) COO Michael D. Durand sold 559 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $674.56, for a total transaction of $377,079.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 8,052 shares in the company, valued at $5,431,557.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

United Rentals Stock Performance

URI traded up $2.09 during trading on Friday, reaching $666.66. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 340,109 shares, compared to its average volume of 588,533. The company has a market capitalization of $44.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.82. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $683.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $585.00. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $325.15 and a 52-week high of $732.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.89.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.35 by $0.80. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 17.31% and a return on equity of 36.44%. The business’s revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.95 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 17.66%.

United Rentals declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the construction company to purchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On United Rentals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of URI. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in United Rentals during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in United Rentals by 71.4% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 48 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on URI. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Barclays lifted their target price on United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on United Rentals in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.