Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Sells 54,162 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 86.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,401 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 54,162 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $6,885,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aventura Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in United Rentals by 121.1% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 42 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Trading Down 1.3%

NYSE URI opened at $1,070.14 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $67.04 billion, a PE ratio of 27.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.81. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $685.04 and a 1-year high of $1,106.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $934.20 and a 200-day moving average of $866.30.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The construction company reported $9.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.47 by ($1.76). The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.20 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 30.56% and a net margin of 15.32%.United Rentals’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $8.86 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 47.26 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were issued a $1.97 dividend. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on URI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,041.00 to $1,119.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,101.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,275.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $903.00 target price on United Rentals and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on United Rentals from $1,025.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, United Rentals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,045.81.

Insider Activity

In other United Rentals news, EVP Craig Adam Pintoff sold 2,466 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $963.00, for a total value of $2,374,758.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 14,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,227,362. This trade represents a 14.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 306 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $954.99, for a total transaction of $292,226.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 5,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,479,732.62. This trade represents a 5.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 26,088 shares of company stock worth $25,628,877 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Profile

United Rentals, Inc (NYSE: URI) is a leading equipment rental company headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. The firm provides rental solutions and related services to construction, industrial, commercial, and municipal customers. Its business model centers on providing access to a broad fleet of equipment on a short-term or long-term basis, enabling customers to avoid the capital expenditure of ownership and to scale equipment use to match project needs.

The company’s product and service offerings span general construction equipment and a range of specialty categories, including aerial work platforms, earthmoving and excavation machines, material handling equipment, pumps, power and HVAC systems, trench and shoring solutions, and tools.