Schechter Investment Advisors LLC Trims Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC cut its holdings in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,527 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 53 shares during the period. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $876,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of United Rentals during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp increased its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1,900.0% during the third quarter. MUFG Americas Holdings Corp now owns 100 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 96.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

United Rentals Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:URI opened at $720.15 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $48.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $660.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $543.15. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $325.15 and a fifty-two week high of $732.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.81.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The construction company reported $11.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $10.85 by $0.41. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 16.91%. The firm had revenue of $3.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $9.74 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 42.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, January 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the construction company to purchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.48. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 13th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is presently 18.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total transaction of $508,105.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,145,485.26. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on URI. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on United Rentals from $322.00 to $559.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. UBS Group lowered United Rentals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $504.00 to $525.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on United Rentals from $510.00 to $718.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on United Rentals from $490.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $572.20.

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.