Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Sells 18 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,289 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 18 shares during the period. United Rentals comprises approximately 1.7% of Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $2,663,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in United Rentals by 4.5% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 637,188 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $412,089,000 after purchasing an additional 27,708 shares during the period. Capital International Investors bought a new position in United Rentals during the first quarter worth about $332,349,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in United Rentals by 77.7% during the second quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 457,056 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $295,626,000 after purchasing an additional 199,810 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in United Rentals by 5.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 382,536 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $247,001,000 after purchasing an additional 20,481 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in United Rentals by 4.4% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 334,179 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $216,123,000 after purchasing an additional 13,970 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of United Rentals from $860.00 to $930.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $565.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $780.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of United Rentals in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $750.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of United Rentals from $873.00 to $954.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $714.92.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Rentals news, SVP Joli L. Gross sold 360 shares of United Rentals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $690.00, for a total transaction of $248,400.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,090 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,822,100. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Price Performance

URI traded up $10.22 on Tuesday, reaching $842.75. The company had a trading volume of 167,061 shares, compared to its average volume of 537,992. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $763.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $704.71. The company has a market cap of $56.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.81. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $387.01 and a 52-week high of $861.74.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The construction company reported $10.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.48 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $3.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 17.35% and a return on equity of 35.87%. The business’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $9.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.38 EPS for the current year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 14th. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.66%.

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.