Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Purchases Shares of 24,337 United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 24,337 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,571,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in URI. SFE Investment Counsel purchased a new stake in United Rentals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $12,765,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in United Rentals by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 11,756 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $9,514,000 after purchasing an additional 1,846 shares during the period. Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its stake in United Rentals by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 95,940 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $77,666,000 after purchasing an additional 15,696 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in United Rentals by 52.0% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,241 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $2,623,000 after purchasing an additional 1,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in United Rentals by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 69,583 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $56,315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,354 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of United Rentals from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $1,320.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, June 29th. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $1,250.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of United Rentals from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Bank of America raised their target price on United Rentals from $1,195.00 to $1,300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $1,350.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, July 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,246.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP William E. Grace sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,133.15, for a total transaction of $1,699,725.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,062 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,869,155.30. This represents a 19.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.47% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of URI stock opened at $1,166.11 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1,096.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $942.44. The stock has a market cap of $72.58 billion, a PE ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $701.59 and a 12 month high of $1,179.18.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The construction company reported $12.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $11.53 by $1.23. The business had revenue of $4.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.22 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 15.67% and a return on equity of 31.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $10.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 48.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $1.97 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.92%.

About United Rentals

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.