Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Purchases 37,919 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 483.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 45,757 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 37,919 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $32,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley raised shares of United Rentals from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $702.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial reduced their price target on United Rentals from $956.00 to $732.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. 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 report on Monday, April 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $729.79.

United Rentals Stock Up 1.0 %

NYSE:URI opened at $590.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $628.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $733.18. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $525.91 and a 1-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.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current 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 dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This is an increase from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is 18.48%.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In other news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total transaction of $701,910.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.