Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 87,329 Shares of McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,199,169 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 87,329 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in McGrath RentCorp were worth $134,091,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its stake in McGrath RentCorp by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,896,943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $212,116,000 after buying an additional 649,567 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of McGrath RentCorp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $13,179,000. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of McGrath RentCorp by 127.1% in the 4th quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC now owns 204,806 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,901,000 after purchasing an additional 114,626 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in McGrath RentCorp by 3,120.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 116,791 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,296,000 after purchasing an additional 113,164 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in McGrath RentCorp during the 4th quarter valued at $9,724,000. 92.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kimberly Ann Box sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total value of $124,690.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $935,175. The trade was a 11.76 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

McGrath RentCorp Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MGRC opened at $113.22 on Thursday. McGrath RentCorp has a 52 week low of $95.50 and a 52 week high of $129.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $118.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $115.40. The firm has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.62.

McGrath RentCorp (NASDAQ:MGRC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $243.75 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $246.93 million. McGrath RentCorp had a return on equity of 13.68% and a net margin of 25.44%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that McGrath RentCorp will post 6.18 earnings per share for the current year.

McGrath RentCorp Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 16th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This is an increase from McGrath RentCorp’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 16th. McGrath RentCorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MGRC has been the topic of several recent research reports. CJS Securities began coverage on shares of McGrath RentCorp in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $152.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of McGrath RentCorp from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th.

McGrath RentCorp Profile

McGrath RentCorp operates as a business to business rental company in the United States and internationally. It rents and sells relocatable modular buildings, portable storage containers, and electronic test equipment. The company operates through four segments: Mobile Modular, Portable Storage, TRS-RenTelco, and Enviroplex.