Mizuho Bank Ltd. Takes Position in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI)

Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new stake in United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE:URI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 75 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in URI. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of United Rentals in the fourth quarter valued at about $14,071,000. Prudential PLC boosted its position in United Rentals by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 21,424 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $15,092,000 after buying an additional 1,286 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in United Rentals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $802,000. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC raised its position in United Rentals by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $4,894,000 after buying an additional 1,825 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in United Rentals during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $13,616,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO William E. Grace sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $638.10, for a total value of $701,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,390,128. This represents a 13.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $956.00 price objective (down previously from $963.00) on shares of United Rentals in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird raised shares of United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $658.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on United Rentals from $850.00 to $750.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on United Rentals from $775.00 to $765.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded United Rentals from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $705.00 to $666.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, United Rentals has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $804.15.

United Rentals Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of URI stock opened at $564.56 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $669.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $750.88. United Rentals, Inc. has a 1-year low of $544.32 and a 1-year high of $896.98. The company has a market cap of $36.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.57, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $11.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.65 by ($0.06). United Rentals had a net margin of 16.78% and a return on equity of 34.21%. On average, equities research analysts expect that United Rentals, Inc. will post 44.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

United Rentals Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $1.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $7.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. This is a boost from United Rentals’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. United Rentals’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.48%.

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.