GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. Makes New $261,000 Investment in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. purchased a new stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 456 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $261,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in United Rentals by 71.4% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 48 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of United Rentals in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1,525.0% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 65 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Arlington Trust Co LLC boosted its stake in United Rentals by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 84 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at United Rentals

In other United Rentals news, COO Michael D. Durand sold 559 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $674.56, for a total value of $377,079.04. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 8,052 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,431,557.12. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, COO Michael D. Durand sold 559 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $674.56, for a total value of $377,079.04. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,052 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,431,557.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 8,379 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $699.63, for a total transaction of $5,862,199.77. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 103,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $72,341,742. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,713 shares of company stock worth $6,747,384 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

United Rentals Trading Up 2.5 %

URI stock traded up $16.68 during trading on Monday, hitting $683.34. The company had a trading volume of 348,368 shares, compared to its average volume of 585,772. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $683.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $588.62. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $325.91 and a 12 month high of $732.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market cap of $45.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.82.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.35 by $0.80. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.44% and a net margin of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.95 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.61 earnings per share for the current year.

United Rentals declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the construction company to repurchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 7th. United Rentals’s payout ratio is 17.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on URI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on United Rentals from $718.00 to $790.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $720.00 to $750.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $630.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Three 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $600.79.

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.