Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC Purchases New Shares in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 337 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in URI. Norges Bank purchased a new position in United Rentals in the fourth quarter worth about $695,716,000. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in United Rentals during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $330,989,000. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,221,228 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,564,722,000 after purchasing an additional 323,636 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,051,365 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $740,624,000 after purchasing an additional 305,491 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 105.6% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 546,165 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $384,740,000 after purchasing an additional 280,502 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Andrew B. Limoges sold 708 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $705.86, for a total value of $499,748.88. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,355,957.06. This trade represents a 26.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael D. Durand sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $626.28, for a total value of $688,908.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,478,697.44. This trade represents a 11.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,908 shares of company stock valued at $1,890,567 over the last three months. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

United Rentals Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:URI opened at $724.19 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $47.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.70. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $629.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $709.03. United Rentals, Inc. has a one year low of $525.91 and a one year high of $896.98.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The construction company reported $8.86 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.92 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.61 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.21% and a net margin of 16.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $9.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $7.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. United Rentals’s payout ratio is currently 18.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

URI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group upgraded United Rentals from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $485.00 to $780.00 in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of United Rentals from $535.00 to $571.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $705.00 to $666.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on United Rentals from $1,000.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $744.31.

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.