Whittier Trust Co. Raises Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,502 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 174 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $38,393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $171,733,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth $164,493,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in United Rentals by 15.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 787,877 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $637,968,000 after buying an additional 105,287 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in United Rentals by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,568 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,956,768,000 after buying an additional 85,325 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service grew its holdings in United Rentals by 79.8% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 167,813 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $118,214,000 after acquiring an additional 74,479 shares during the last quarter. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on URI. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Argus increased their price objective on United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Baird R W upgraded United Rentals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on United Rentals from $940.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $829.00.

United Rentals Trading Up 3.0 %

NYSE:URI opened at $627.42 on Thursday. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $585.27 and a one year high of $896.98. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $698.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $758.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.19, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted 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 return on equity of 34.21% and a net margin of 16.78%. As a group, analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s payout ratio is currently 18.48%.

United Rentals Company Profile

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.