Fred Alger Management LLC Purchases Shares of 2,523 United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,523 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $2,043,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in URI. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of United Rentals by 11.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 9,203 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $7,492,000 after purchasing an additional 964 shares during the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its position in United Rentals by 31.9% during the second quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 563 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Retireful LLC purchased a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the third quarter valued at $697,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of United Rentals by 1,067.5% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 59,879 shares of the construction company's stock worth $48,486,000 after acquiring an additional 54,750 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BDF Gestion bought a new stake in shares of United Rentals in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,998,000. 96.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on URI shares. Argus increased their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Barclays increased their price target on United Rentals from $400.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on United Rentals from $565.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on United Rentals from $774.00 to $795.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on United Rentals from $930.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $751.67.

United Rentals Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE URI traded down $8.89 during trading on Monday, reaching $857.11. 354,021 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 544,275. United Rentals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $474.56 and a 12-month high of $896.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $56.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.68. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $828.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $738.16.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $11.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $12.49 by ($0.69). The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.01 billion. United Rentals had a net margin of 17.12% and a return on equity of 34.73%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $11.73 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Anthony S. Leopold sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $823.24, for a total transaction of $740,916.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,044 shares in the company, valued at $1,682,702.56. The trade was a 30.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Rentals 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.