DGS Capital Management LLC Grows Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

DGS Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,441 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 18 shares during the quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $827,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in United Rentals by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,179,328 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,905,379,000 after acquiring an additional 186,931 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in United Rentals by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,756,009 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $624,121,000 after acquiring an additional 170,958 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $586,415,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in United Rentals by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,441,997 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $569,394,000 after acquiring an additional 39,917 shares during the period. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in United Rentals by 104,089.8% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,341,964 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $476,961,000 after acquiring an additional 1,340,676 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on URI shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays raised their price target on United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on United Rentals in a report on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $589.21.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Price Performance

URI traded down $6.36 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $660.38. 183,863 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 570,211. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1 year low of $325.15 and a 1 year high of $732.37. The company has a market capitalization of $44.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.84. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $680.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $566.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.85 by $0.41. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The company had revenue of $3.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.05 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were issued a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 13th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 18.44%.

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

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.