Handelsbanken Fonder AB Increases Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 29.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 17,027 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,830 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $11,994,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in URI. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 85,325 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in United Rentals by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,566,802 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,264,326,000 after purchasing an additional 9,256 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 996,014 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $862,110,000 after purchasing an additional 57,002 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of United Rentals by 15.4% in 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 period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of United Rentals by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 732,954 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $517,018,000 after buying an additional 52,037 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

URI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of United Rentals from $775.00 to $765.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price target on United Rentals from $985.00 to $835.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on United Rentals from $940.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $956.00 target price (down previously from $963.00) on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered 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 note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $829.00.

United Rentals Trading Down 5.5 %

Shares of URI stock opened at $656.42 on Friday. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $596.48 and a fifty-two week high of $896.98. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $731.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $769.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.94, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts predict 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 will be paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a $1.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. This is a positive change from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.48%.

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.