Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,963 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $1,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 4.0% in the third quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 339 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 4.2% in the third quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 324 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. First County Bank CT boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 3.2% in the third quarter. First County Bank CT now owns 422 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 3.2% in the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 453 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. boosted its position in shares of United Rentals by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 814 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $573,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United Rentals Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of URI opened at $617.44 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $40.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.98. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $596.48 and a fifty-two week high of $896.98. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $719.38 and a 200-day moving average price of $767.93.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, equities research analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a $1.79 dividend. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.16%. This is an increase from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is presently 18.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total value of $701,910.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on URI shares. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $775.00 to $765.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $940.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Baird R W upgraded shares of United Rentals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $1,004.00 to $974.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $829.00.

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.