Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $64.16 Million Stock Holdings in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 79,235 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 2,554 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of United Rentals worth $64,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in United Rentals by 82,462.2% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,606,661 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,300,962,000 after buying an additional 1,604,715 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of United Rentals by 259.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 150,152 shares of the construction company's stock worth $97,108,000 after acquiring an additional 108,360 shares during the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 4,778.7% during the second quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 103,672 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $67,048,000 after acquiring an additional 101,547 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in United Rentals by 3.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,416,568 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,956,768,000 after acquiring an additional 85,325 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in United Rentals by 10.5% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 704,145 shares of the construction company's stock worth $570,167,000 after purchasing an additional 66,957 shares during the period. 96.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In related news, SVP Anthony S. Leopold sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $823.24, for a total value of $740,916.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

United Rentals Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:URI traded up $11.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $722.64. 1,213,968 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 548,106. United Rentals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $533.70 and a fifty-two week high of $896.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.87, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.66. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $827.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $751.30.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The construction company reported $11.80 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $12.49 by ($0.69). The business had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 34.73% and a net margin of 17.12%. United Rentals's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $11.73 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.46 earnings per share for the current 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 $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, November 13th. United Rentals's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on URI shares. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $565.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on United Rentals from $780.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on United Rentals from $800.00 to $910.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of United Rentals from $955.00 to $985.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Argus boosted their price target on shares of United Rentals from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, United Rentals presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $770.71.

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.