Alexis Investment Partners LLC Makes New $192,000 Investment in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Alexis Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 273 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $192,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. boosted its stake in United Rentals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 814 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $573,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 788 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $555,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 2,794 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,002,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the period. Klingman & Associates LLC grew its stake in United Rentals by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 669 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its position in United Rentals by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 368 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

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

United Rentals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE URI opened at $590.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.98. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $525.91 and a one year high of $896.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.25, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.72. The company’s fifty day moving average is $632.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $735.11.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.65 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. Analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of United Rentals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $702.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group cut shares of United Rentals from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $910.00 to $485.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. Citigroup lowered their price target on United Rentals from $720.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on United Rentals from $1,000.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $729.79.

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.