Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 153 Shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Essex Financial Services Inc. lowered its stake in shares of United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) by 24.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 463 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 153 shares during the period. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in United Rentals were worth $266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 889 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,441 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $827,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 5,816 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,335,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 900 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $516,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of United Rentals by 71.4% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 48 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at United Rentals

In other United Rentals news, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the company’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 value of $508,105.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other United Rentals news, CEO Matthew John Flannery sold 8,379 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $699.63, for a total value of $5,862,199.77. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 103,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $72,341,742. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO William E. Grace sold 775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $655.62, for a total value of $508,105.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,323 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,145,485.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,713 shares of company stock worth $6,747,384 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

URI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of United Rentals from $325.00 to $400.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of United Rentals from $575.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Monday, January 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $500.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $600.79.

United Rentals Stock Performance

URI opened at $666.66 on Friday. United Rentals, Inc. has a 52-week low of $325.15 and a 52-week 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 company has a market cap of $44.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.82. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $683.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $586.57.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The construction company reported $9.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.35 by $0.80. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.44 billion. United Rentals had a return on equity of 36.44% and a net margin of 17.31%. United Rentals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $7.95 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that United Rentals, Inc. will post 43.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

United Rentals Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 8th will be given a $1.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 7th. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.66%.

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.