Entropy Technologies LP Makes New $12.63 Million Investment in United Rentals, Inc. $URI

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 15,602 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,627,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aventura Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other United Rentals news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 22,768 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $984.98, for a total transaction of $22,426,024.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,980 shares in the company, valued at $98,478,300.40. The trade was a 18.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 306 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $954.99, for a total transaction of $292,226.94. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 5,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,479,732.62. This represents a 5.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 26,088 shares of company stock valued at $25,628,877 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on URI. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,275.00 price target on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $1,030.00 price objective on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on United Rentals from $600.00 to $715.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings raised United Rentals from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on United Rentals from $950.00 to $1,130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,045.81.

United Rentals Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of URI opened at $1,076.03 on Friday. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $682.08 and a one year high of $1,106.88. The company has a market cap of $67.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $920.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $862.24.

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

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $1.97 per share. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 13th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is currently 20.10%.

United Rentals Company 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.